(logo)
(navigation image)
Home American Libraries | Canadian Libraries | Universal Library | Open Source Books | Project Gutenberg | Biodiversity Heritage Library | Children's Library | Additional Collections

Search: Advanced Search

Anonymous User (login or join us)Upload
See other formats

Full text of "Central and South America"

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO 




3 1822 02663 4394 



I'M 







<;*«? "'* t« 



InN* ' 



H 



\^ o 






SHIP'S LIBRARY. 



U.S. S. MINNESOTA. 



r 



LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY OF 
CALIFORNIA 

SAN DIEGO 



J 



V.I 



STANFORD'S COMPENDIUM 

OF 

GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

(NEW ISSUE) 




.SIAITE (IF BiiLIVAi; : CARACAS. 



STANFOED'S 
COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

(NEW ISSUE) 

CENTRAL 

AND 

SOUTH AMERICA 

VOL. I 



A. H. KEANE, F.R.G.S. 

AUTHOR OF 'Asia' and 'AFRICA' IN SAME SERIES; 'EASTERN GEOORAPHY ' 

'the BOER states'; 'ethnology'; 'man past and present'; 

ETC., ETC. 



EDITED BY 

Sir CLEMENTS MARKHAM, K.C.B., F.R.S. 

president OF THE ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL AND HAKLUYT SOCIETIES 



MAPS AND ILLUSTRATIONS 



LONDON: EDWARD STANFORD 

12, 13, & 14 LONG ACRE, W.C. 
1901 



PREFACE 

In the new issue of this series the single volume origin- 
ally devoted to Central America, the West Indies, and 
South America is replaced by two, each somewhat larger 
than their predecessor. The very ample additional space 
thus secured has been found no more than sufficient to 
embody the more important results of the numerous 
scientific expeditions made to almost every part of Latin 
America during the last two decades by Whymper, Con- 
way, Fitzgerald, Crevaux, Thouar, im Thurn, Eodway, 
Ehrenreich, von den Steinen, Eeiss, Church, Stlibel, Ball, 
Brigham, Hill, Eomero, Thompson, Seler, and many other 
distinguished geographers, archseologists, naturalists, and 
anthropologists. Many of the discoveries were of a 
fundamental character, profoundly modifying the views 
liitherto prevailing on such questions as the tectonic 
constitution, both of Central and South America, the 
West Indian orographic systems, the distribution of 
plants and animals over the whole area, the cradle and 
primitive migrations of Caribs and Arawaks ; the 
ethnical relations of Toltecs, Aztecs, and Mayas, of 



Vlll COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

Quichuas (Peruvians) and Aymaras (Bolivians), the 
origin of the marvellous Tiahuanaco monuments, and of 
other remains of native American culture. Attention 
has also been claimed by the recent political changes in 
the West Indies, by frontier questions, as between British 
Guiana and Venezuela, and between Chili and Argentina, 
by inter-oceanic ship-canal projects, by transcontinental 
railway schemes, and by the altered economic conditions, 
especially in Mexico, Chili, Brazil, and Argentina. All 
these transformations called for adequate treatment, if 
only to show that in the New World, material and moral 
progress is no longer confined to " Anglo-Saxon America," 
and that henceforth the Hispano-Lusitanian common- 
wealths enter into the comity of the other cultured 
nations on a footing of absolute equality and independ- 
ence. 

In distributing the subject matter over these two 
volumes, it has been found convenient to deviate somewhat 
from the usual arrangement. Thus the European colonies 
in South America — British, Dutch, and French Guiana — 
have been transferred to the volume on Central America 
and the West Indies, with which they have always been 
popularly associated as well as intimately connected in 
their history, traditions, commercial and ethnical relations. 
The arrangement has the further advantage of giving a 
distinct unity to the present volume, to which is reserved 
the whole of the South American continent, so far as it 



PREFACE ■ IX 

forms a political domain complete in itself, and inde- 
pendent of all Foreign Powers. 

The publisher is indebted to Dr. F. P. Moreno for the 
use of some of his excellent photographs of Argentina 
and Patagonia ; to Sir Martin Conway for the illustra- 
tions of lUimani ; to Mr. F. A. A. Simons for those in the 
chapters on Colombia ; and to Mr. Pilditch of the Puerto 
Cabello and Valencia Eailway Company for those relating 
to Venezuela. Mr. Whymper has kindly consented to 
the reproduction of the view of Chimborazo and Coto- 
paxi from his Travels amongst the Great Abides of the 
Equator, and the view of Aconcagua is taken by per- 
mission from Mr, Fitzgerald's The Highest Andes. 
The photographs of Kio de Janeiro are from Messrs. 
Spooiier's Series, and a number of other coast towns have 
been illustrated from photographs by Mr. Boote of Buenos 
Ayres. 

A. H. KEANE. 

Odoler, 1900. 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER I 

General Survey — Physical and Biological Relations 



North and South America : Analogies and Contrasts 

North and South America : Physical and Climatic Contrasts 

Seaboards — Fjords — Islands 

Climate of South America . 

Relief of the Land— The Inland Seas 

Central Plains— The Great Fluvial Basins 

Orography — The Andes 

The Brazilian Uplands 

Subsidence and Upheaval . 

Flora 

Fauna 

The South American Neogaic Realm 



PAGE 
1 

3 
6 
8 
10 
12 
l:> 
18 
19 
20 
25 
26 



CHAPTER n 

Early Ethical Relations 

Inhabitants of South America .... 

Primitive Man in South America of two Types 

Physical Characters of the Aborigines 

Their Polysynthetic Speech ..... 

Number and Distribution of the South American Languages 
The Lingoa Geral ...... 

South American Stock Races and Languages 
General Culture— Contrast between North and South 
Iso-cultural Zones ...-•• 
The Cultureless Zone ..... 

The Civilised Zone ...•■. 



30 

31 
3.3 
34 
35 
36 
38 
42 
43 
45 
48 



xu 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TKAVEL 



CHAPTER III 

Later Ethnical and Historic Relations 



The Discovery — Exploration of the Seaboard 

Indian Expeditions — Early "N'oyages on the Amazons 

Relations of the Wliites to the Aborigines 

Miscegenation .... 

Settlement of Brazil 

The Negro Element 

Mestizo Terminology 

Spanish and Portuguese Colonial Administration 

The Revolt ..... 

The Brazilian Empire and Republic 

The Spanish South American States 



CHAPTEK IV 

Vexezdela 

Extent — Boundaries — Disputed Frontiers 

Physical Features — General Relief 

Northern Uplands — Sierra de ]\Ierida — Coast Range 

Cordillera de la Silla — The Southern Uplands : Sierras 

and Pacaraima 
Earthqxiakes — Igneous Phenomena 
The Venezuelan Llanos 
Scenery of the Llanos 
Hydrography — Lake Maracaibo 
Lake of Valencia . 
The Orinoco Basin . 
The Delta . . . . 

Orinoco Scenery 
Gulf of Paria — Climate 
Flora .... 

Fauna .... 

Inhabitants — The Aborigines 
Europeans and Mestizos 

Prospects of Immigrants — Historic Retrospect 
TopograjDhy — Chief Towns 
Government — Social Condition 



Pa rim a 



CONTENTS 



Xlll 



CHAPTER V 



Colombia 

Boundaries — Extent— Areas and Populations 

Physical Features — The Colombian Andes — Tlie Eastern Cordillci 

The Central Cordillera 

The Western Cordillera 

The Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta — Hydrography — The Ma 

dalena-Cauca Basin 
The Magdalena .... 
The Cauca ..... 
The Sinu, Atrato, San Juan, and Patia Rivers 
Lacustrine Basins : Lakes Fuquene and Guatavita 
Climate .... 
Flora .... 

Fauna .... 

Inhabitants 

The Cultured Peoples— The Chibchas 
Primitive Mining Process . 
The Wild Tribes— The Goajiros . 
Topography 

Chief Towns of Colombia . 
The Discovery — Conquest and Settlement 
Colonial Administration 
The Revolution— Present Regime 
Religion — Education — Natural Resources — Mineral Wealth 



PAOE 
113 

116 
118 
120 

121 
122 
125 
126 
128 
129 
131 
133 
134 
135 
137 
138 
140 
141 
149 
150 
151 
152 



CHAPTER VI 



Ecuador 



Extent — Boundaries — Areas and Populations 

Relief of the Land — The Eastern Cordillera and Pacitic Coast 

Range . 
The Avenue of Volcanoes . 
Chimborazo . 
Tunguragua — Altar 
Cotopaxi 

Hydrography — The Rios Guayas and Esmeraldas 
The Rio Pastasa ..... 



154 

157 
159 
161 
162 
163 
165 
166 



XIV 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRArHY AND TRAVEL 











PAGE 


The Rio Na]») ....... 167 


Climate .... 








168 


Flora .... 








170 


Fauna .... 








171 


Inhabitants — The Quitus and Cara.s 








173 


The Jivaros 








176 


The Zaparos — The Piojes . 








177 


History — Colonial Rule 








178 


The Republic 








179 


Topogra])hy 








180 


Resources — Land Tenure . 








182 


Administration 








183 


The Galapagos Islands 








184 



CHAPTER YII 



Peru 



Extent — Area — Population 

Physical Features : Plateaux and Cordilleras 

The Negra and Blanca Ranges 

The Cerro de Pasco and Carabaya Range . 

The Volcanic Zone : Misti — Omate^Tutupaca 

Underground Agencies — Thermal AVaters — Varied Scenery 

Local Terminology 
Hydrography — The Amazon System 
The Marauon and Putumayo 
The Ucayali System 

The Huallaga and Javari — Pacific Drainage 
Lacustrine Basins — Lake Titicaca 
Climate 
Flora 
Fauna 

Inhabitants — The Cultured Peoples — The Yuncas 
The Aymaras 

The Quicliuas — Empire of the Incas 
The Uncultured Peoples — The Antis — The Chunchos 
Topography — Railway Enterprise 

Natural Resources — Vegetable Products — Guano — Minerals 
Causes and Results of the Chilian "War — The Peruvian Corporatioi 
Administration ...... 



186 
188 
189 
190 
191 

192 
195 
197 
198 
200 
201 
202 
204 
205 
206 
208 
210 
214 
216 
227 
230 
231 



CONTENTS 



XV 



CHAPTER VIII 



Bolivia 

PAGE 

Boundaries — Extent — Population ..... 233 

Physical Features — The Coast Range and the Cordillera Real . 236 

The Cordillera de Cochabaniba and the Eastern Sierras . . 240 

The Yungas Zone ....... 241 

Hydrography — The Titicaca Closed Lacustrine Basin . . 242 

The Madre de Dies and Beni Rivers .... 244 

The Rio Grande and Mamore ..... 245 

The Mojos Lacustrine Depression ..... 247 

The Pilcomavd ....... 248 

Climate ........ 249 

Flora ........ 251 

Fauna ........ 253 

Inhabitants— The Mojos ...... 254 

The Chiquitos ....... 256 

The Chiriguanos ....... 257 

The Bolivians — Historic Retrospect .... 258 

Topography — Railway Projects ..... 259 

Resources — Minerals — Vegetable Products . . . 265 

Communications ....... 266 

Administration . . . . .267 



CHAPTER IX 



Chili 



Extent — Boundary Questions — Area — Population 
Physical Features — The Central Plain 
The Western Cordillera 
The Cordillera de los Andes 
Mercedario — Aconcagua — Tupungato 
The Southern Andes — Igneous and Glacial Phenomena 
The Chilian Archipelagoes 
Magellan Strait — Tierra del Fuego 
King Charles South Land . 
Mas a Fuera — Juan Fernandez 
Hydrography — The Chilian Coast Streams 

h 



269 
273 

274 
276 
278 
283 
285 
287 
290 
293 
294 



COMPENDIUM OF GP^OGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 



Lakes ...... 

Climate . . 

Flora ...... 

Fauna ...... 

Inhabitants — The Araucanians 

The Fuegians — Yaligans and Alacalufs 

The Chilians ..... 

Topography — Railway Enterprise . 

Natural Resources — Agricultural and ]\Iineral Wealth 

Land Tenure — Emigration 

Administration ..... 



PAGE 

296 
297 
••300 
302 
304 
•■'.07 
310 
311 
323 
325 
326 



CHAPTERS X AND XI 



Argentina 



Boundaries — Areas — Populations . 

European Lnniigrants 

Physical Features — General Survey 

The Argentine and Patagonian Cordilleras 

The Cordoba, A''entana, and Tandil Heights 

Argentine Fuegia, and Staten Island 

The Pampas .... 

The Patagonian Plateau 

Hydrogi'aphy — The Parana- Uruguay Basin and Delta 

The Rios Bermejo and Salado 

The Rio Uulce and the Cordoba Affluents 

The Lower Parana and the Plate Estuary 

The Upper and Lower Colorado Basins 

The Patagonian Rivers and Lacustrine Basins 

The Magellanic Lakes 

Climate ..... 

Flora ..... 

Scenery of Gran Chaco 

Fauna .... 

Inhabitants — Prehistoric Peo]>les . 

The Pampas Indians and Guarani of the Missions 

The Calchaquis and Gran Chaco Indians . 

The Tobas and Matacos 

The Gauchos .... 

The Patagonians .... 

The Argentines and Italians 



328 
331 
332 
333 
337 
338 
339 
341 
344 
347 
348 
349 
351 
352 
358 
360 
363 
367 
368 
374 
376 
378 
379 
381 
384 



CONTENTS 



Topograph}^ 

Historic Retrospect 

Material Progress — Railway Enterprise 

Agriculture and Stock-breeding . 

Government — Political Situation . 

Religion — Education — Defences . 



CHAPTER XII 



Uruguay 



Extent — Area — Population 

Physical Features — The Cuchillas 

Hydrography — Tlie Uruguay River 

Climate .... 

Flora .... 

Fauna 

Inhabitants — The Charruas 

The Gauchos and Uruguayans 

Topography — Historic Retrosjject . 

Railway Enterprise 

Resources — The Meat Industries . 

Government — Education — Finance 



CHAPTER XIIT 

Paraguay 

Boundaries — Extent — Population . 

Physical Features ..... 

Hydrography — The Paraguay River and its Affluents 

The Upper and Middle Parana Basin 

Climate .... 

Flora and Vegetable Resources 

Fauna .... 

Stock-Breeding 

Inhabitants — The Payaguas 

The Guarani and the Missions 

The Paraguayans . 

Topography 

Historic Retrospect — Administration 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



CHAPTERS XIV AND XV 



Brazil 

Extent — Frontier Questions — Area — Population . 

Ethnical Elements of the Pojiulation and their Distribution 

Physical Features — Seaboard — Headlands and Islands 

Orography — The Serra do Mar 

The Serra do Espinhaco 

The Western Serras, Plateaux, and Campos 

Geological Formations 

The Brazilian Lowlands and Woodlands . 

Hydrography — The Amazon — Estuary- — Lateral Channels and 

Islands .... 

The Amazonian Affluents . 
The Jurua, Purus, and Madeira . 
The Tapajos, Xingu, and Tocantins 
The Rio Negro and other Northern Affluents 
The S. Francisco and other Coast Streams 
Climate ..... 
Flora . . ■ . 

Fauna ..... 

Inhabitants — The Aborigines 

The Tapuya, Tupi-Guarani, Carib, and Arawak Families 
The Brazilian Negroes 
The Europeans .... 
Topography .... 

Natural Resources — Mining Industry 
Agricultural Prospects — Coffee Culture 
Stock-breeding — Forest Produce . 
Railway Enterprise — ^Trade 
Government — Education — Finance — Armaments 



PAGE 

486 
489 
493 
496 
498 
500 
504 
507 

513 

517 
518 
521 
524 
526 
531 
537 
541 
552 
554 
561 
564 
565 
584 
585 
587 
588 
589 



CHAPTER XVI 

The Falkland Islands and South Gkorgia 



593 



LIST OF MAPS 



1. 


Political ilap of South America . 




To face 


'pciyc 1 


2. 


Map 


of Prehistoric Inland Seas, etc. 






16 


3. 


Ethnological Map of South America 






42 


4. 


Map 


of Venezuela 






112 


5. 




Colombia . 






152 


6. 




Ecuador 






184 


7. 




Peru 






232 


8. 


,, 


Bolivia 






268 


9. 


,, 


Northern Chile 






326 


10. 


,, 


Southern Chile and Patagonia 






372 


11. 


,, 


Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay 




418 


12. 


,, 


the Harbour of Rio Janeiro 




578 


13. 




Brazil 






592 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 









PAGE 


1. 


Statue of Bolivar : Caracas 


F, 


ontispieee 


2. 


Chincliona ... 




23 


3. 


Tajiir ...... 




24 


4. 


Rhea ...... 




25 


5. 


Ai-madillo ..... 




28 


6. 


Tlie First House erected on the Spanish Main, still 


existing 






at Cartagena .... 




53 


7. 


Mestizos of Qnindio .... 




65 


8. 


Anaconda ... 




97 


9. 


Arawaks ..... 




99 


10. 


Caracas . . . 




105 


11. 


La Guaira ..... 




107 


12. 


Bodyguard of the President of \'ene/;uela 




110 


1-3. 


The Capitol, Caracas .... 




112 


14. 


Stern-wheel Steamer on the Kio ^lagdalena . 




123 


15. 


Toucan ...... 




1-33 


16. 


Muyscas 




136 


17. 


Goajiros 




139 


18. 


Bogota ..... 




142 


19. 


Main Street of Bogota — Ladies wearing ^Mantillas 




143 


20. 


Main Road, Honda to Bogota 




144 


21. 


Gateway of Cartagena 




146 


22. 


Santa Marta ...... 




148 


2.3. 


Summit of Chimborazo 




160 


24. 


Interior of the Crater of Cotojjaxi 




164 


2.") 


Coconuco Lidian of Cotocaehi, Ecuador 




173 


26. 


Water-carriers of Quito, Ecuador 




175 



LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 









PACiE 


27. Guayaquil . . . . . . .181 


28. The Great Doorway, Tiahuanaco 






209 


29. Inca Indian .... 






213 


30. A Chuncho from tlie Montana 






215 


31. Lima ..... 






219 


32. Callao Harbour 






221 


33. Bridge on the Oroya Railway 






223 


34. Arica ..... 






226 


35. Illimani .... 






238 


36. Gorge near the Cuzanaco Mine, Illimani 






239 


37. Lake Titicaca .... 






243 


38. Capybara .... 






253 


39. La Paz de Ayacucho . 






261 


40. Aconcagua .... 






280 


41. Mount Tronador 






283 


42. Glacier Bay, Strait.s of Magellan 






288 


43. Guanaco .... 






303 


44. Yahgan .... 






308 


45. Iquique .... 






313 


46. Coquimbo ... 






314 


47. Valparaiso .... 






316 


48. The Museum, Santiago . 






318 


49. Coronel .... 






321 


50. Aconcagua : Pa.so de Los Contrabandista.s 






335 


51. Rio Santa Cruz 






345 


52. Lake Nahuelhuapi 






354 


53. Ancient Eastern Outlet of Lake San Martin 






356 


54. Lake Argentino . . 






357 


55. The Cordillon of the Andes at Last Hope Inlet 




359 


56. The Incas' Bridge on the Mendoza-Santiago Road 




375 


57. Gaucho ...... 




382 


58. Tehuelche .... 






385 


59. Rosario .... 






394 


60. Avenida S. Martin, Mendoza . 






399 


61. Summit of the Usjiallata Pass (La Cumbre) 






401 


62. Cathedral of Cordoba 






403 


63. Mayo Avenue, Buenos Ayres 






407 


64. Municipal Buildings, La Plata 






409 



XXll 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 



65. Museo de la Plata 






411 


66. Monte Video . 






4.32 


67. Colonia 






434 


68. Victoria Falls of the I-Guazu 






460 


69. Paraguay Tea 






464 


70. Palace of Lopez, Asuncion 






479 


71. Yellow-Tailed Howler and Yc 


img . 




542 


72. Marmosets 






544 


73. Coati . . 






546 


74. The Paca 






547 


75. The Great Ant-Eater 






548 


76. Kayapo 






554 


77. Apiaca 






555 


78. Bakairi 






556 


79. Xaliuqua 






5o/ 


SO. Bororo of Central Brazil 






560 


81. Street in Pernambuco 






571 


82. Street in Bahia 






573 


83. Rio de Janeiro 






576 


84. Rio Harbour 






578 




.li 



POLITICAL ^MAP OF SOUTH AMERICA 




ERRATUM. 

The boundary between the Republic of Chili and the 
Argentine Republic south of latitude 26° 52' 45" has 
been referred for arbitration to the British Government. 
The boundary line shown on the maps at pages 
372 and 418 follows the Chilian claim ; the Argentine 
claim has been accidentally omitted. 



SOUTH AMERICA 

CHAPTER I 

GENERAL SUEVEY PHYSICAL AND BIOLOGICAL RELATIONS 

North and South America : Analogies and Contrasts — Physical and 
Climatic Contrasts — Seaboard — Fjords — Islands — Climate of South 
America — Relief of the Land — The Inland Seas — Central Plains— The 
Great Fluvial Basins — Orography — The Andes — The Brazilian 
Uplands — Subsidence and Upheaval — Flora — Fauna — The South 
American Neogteic Realm. 

North and South America : Analogies and Contrasts. 

Between the " twin continents," as the northern and 
southern sections of the New World have been called, 
the transitions are everywhere so gradual that it is not 
at first sight easy to say where one ends and the other 
begins. But when the question is studied on a large- 
scale map, we see at once that the true natural limits 
are laid down, at the north-west extremity of the southern 
section, by the Gulf of Darien (Oraba), which formerly 
penetrated much farther inland than at present, if it did 
not even present a free waterway between the Atlantic 
and Pacific Oceans. The course of such a channel, which 
many engineers believe might be easily restored by the 
VOL. I B 



2 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

construction of an international ship-canal offering far 
greater facilities than any of the alternative schemes 
hitherto proposed, is clearly indicated by the trend of the 
Atrato and S. Juan river valleys. 

The joint fluvial axis of these streams, which are 
separated only by a low water-parting considerably nearer 
to the western than to the eastern ocean, runs from the 
Caribbean Sea, where the Atrato debouches, nearly due 
south to the mouth of the S. Juan below Bonaventura, 
on the Pacitic coast of Colombia. While thus cutting 
off the Andean system at this point from the Central 
American Cordilleras, the two river valleys, which have 
a total length of nearly 500 miles, constitute at the same 
time the most natural parting-line between the two divi- 
sions of the New World. 

So obvious are the points of resemblance between 
these divisions that they strike the eye at the first glance. 
Both present the same rough triangular shape, with base 
inclined from north-west to south-east, and sides of nearly 
equal length converging to the apex southwards. In 
superficial extent there is little difference, the northern 
triangle scarcely exceeding the southern by one-eightli, 
while a surprising parallelism is presented by the general 
relief, the disposition of mountain ranges, tablelands, plains, 
and fluvial basins. Thus to the Eocky ^fountains and 
Central Sierras correspond the Andean Cordilleras, both 
running close to the west coast, and ramifying at 
intervals into two or even three branches, which enclose 
vast plateaux often of great elevation. Indeed, the re- 
semblances are here so striking, and extend to so many 
secondary features, such as active and extinct volcanoes 
with extensive lava-fields and other igneous matter over- 
lying sedimentary formations, that the unity of the 
orographic system from Fuegia to Alaska, first suggested 



GENERAL SURVEY 6 

by Humboldt, was long accepted by geographers without 
demur. 

On the Atlantic side the correspondence is maintained 
by the Alleghanis in the north, and in the south by the 
Sierra de Merida, the Sierra de Mar, and the Brazilian 
highlands. In both regions the western and eastern 
mountain systems enclose boundless central plains — 
prairies, savannahs, llanos, pampas, woodlands — -which 
are traversed in much the same directions by a few 
fluvial arteries, rivalling or surpassing in volume, length, 
and drainage area the great rivers of the eastern hemi- 
sphere. With two important exceptions — Mackenzie and 
Yukon — the oulfall is to the Atlantic, recipient also of so 
many running waters on its eastern seaboard. Thus the 
Churchill, St. Lawrence and Hudson trending east, and 
the Missouri -Mississippi with a southerly course, find 
their exact counterparts in the Orinoco and Amazon on 
the one hand and the Parana-Paraguay on the other. 

Physical and Climatic Contrasts 

But these analogies, which lie somewhat on the 
surface, are perhaps more than balanced by the contrasts, 
which are in some respects of greater moment, and on 
the whole more favourable to the north than to the south. 
Foremost amongst these is the position in respect of the 
poles and the equator. Here the discrepancy is enormous, 
sufficient in fact to constitute the southern division 
mainly a tropical, the nortliern mainly a temperate region. 
To be sure, much of North America seems to lie within 
the Arctic Circle, or near enough to be called Ai'ctic. But 
the absolute area of this section, consisting so largely of 
archipelagos with extensive intervening water-surfaces, 
is less than is commonly supposed, and is amply compen- 



4 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TPtAVEL 

sated by the bulging out and consequent great average 
breadth of the continent in more favourable latitudes. 

But the very opposite is the case in South America, 
where the bulging takes place about the equator, with a 
consequent excess of heat and moisture, and where, beyond 
the Tropic of Capricorn, the land tapers so rapidly south- 
wards that but a relatively small area is extra-tropical. 
Hence only a fraction of the southern continent would be 
suitable for European settlement were the tropical heats 
not tempered by the great elevation of the Brazilian and 
Andean uplands, and by the moderating influence of sea 
breezes from the Atlantic. Owing to these favourable 
conditions the general climate of South America is more 
equable and cooler by several degrees than that of the 
African continent. Thus the isothermal line of greatest 
heat, which runs from the isthmus of Panama mainly 
along the seaboard to Cape Sao Roque, intersecting the 
equator at the Amazon estuary, ranges from about 80° 
to 82° F., while the temperature of the corresponding 
heat zone on the east side of the Atlantic normally 
exceeds 86" F. 

Other important consequences, also to the advantage 
of the north, follow from this general latitudinal position 
of the twin continents. During the glacial epochs, 
whether simultaneous or not on either side of the equator, 
a fairly warm temperature must have at all times pre- 
vailed in inter-tropical South America, with the result 
that the running waters suffered no serious arrest, but 
continued their natural process of development without 
interruption except in the sub-arctic lands of the extreme 
south. 

Hence on the Chilian coast and in Fuegia alone are 
found those peculiar fjord-like formations which, as in 
Scandinavia and Greenland, are due to the grinding action 



GENERAL SURVEY 5 

of glaciers or frozen streams. Elsewhere- the rivers have 
excavated their beds down to their natural levels, and in 
so doing have drained nearly all the old lacustrine basins 
and effaced most of the falls and rapids which formerly 
abounded in many districts. Cataracts still survive in 
the Colombian and Peruvian Andes, on the Parana, the 
Madeira and elsewhere ; but all the large lakes have dis- 
appeared except Titicaca and the still periodically flooded 
Mojos basin about the Amazon-Parana water-parting, at 
the northern extremity of the old Pampean Sea. 

Even Titicaca, though still an imposing sheet of water, 
is little more than a highland loch compared to its vast 
dimensions in Secondary and Tertiary times. " Geological 
examinations show that Titicaca was once one of the large 
lakes of the world, and that it has slowly been drying 
up." -^ 

How different from all this the picture presented by 
the northern continent, where glacial action attained a 
greater development than in any other part of the world, 
where the ice-cap, thousands of feet thick, advanced and 
retreated more than once over vast areas millions of miles 
in extent, and where icebergs in great numbers are still 
annually discharged from the Greenland and Alaskan 
glaciers. Hence the mighty streams held in their icy 
fetters till far into the Pleistocene age have not since 
had time to arrive at maturity. They still tumble over 
some of the grandest falls on the globe, and have left 
undrained the great lakes of the Laurentian basin and 
many others strewn over the Canadian Dominion, while 
the seaboard is so finely diversified with fjords, gulfs, bays, 
and other inlets that it presents 26,000 miles of contour- 
lines compared with the 19,000 miles of the somewhat 
monotonous South American coastlands. Even this 

1 Col. G. E. Church, Geogr. Jour. (Oct. 1898), p. 401. 



6 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

might seem a liberal allowance until we find that Europe, 
for instance, with little more than half the area, can show 
a seaboard of no less than 16,000 miles, including all 
the windings of the coasts. 

Seaboard — Fjords — Islands 

Practically the South American coasts, always ex- 
cepting Chile, Patagonia, and Fuegia, have no windings 
or inlets beyond the relatively insignificant Gulfs of 
Darien and Venezuela in the north and Guayaquil on 
the west, with the still smaller bays of Eio de Janeiro 
and Bahia on the east side. The few other indentations 
are not marine inlets, but great fluvial estuaries, which by 
the deposits of silt are being slowly transformed to deltas 
like that of the Orinoco, or else converted into alluvial 
plains like that of the Eio Colorado. Formerly the lower 
reaches of this Pampean stream presented the aspect of 
a very large estuary running over 100 miles inland, 
though still greatly inferior to those of the Plate and 
Amazon, which are amongst the most typical and ex- 
tensive of such formations in the world. 

There is also a remarkable absence of islands or insular 
groups, South America showing in this respect a close 
analogy with the two other great Austral lands. As 
South Africa has its Madagascar and Southern Australia 
its Tasmania, so our continent terminates southwards in 
Tierra del Fuego. The few insular groups in the Caribbean 
Sea should either be grouped with the West Indian system 
(Leeward Chain) or else regarded as almost still forming 
part of the mainland (Trinidad, Tobago). In even closer 
connection with the mainland are Chiloe, the Chonos 
Archipelago, Wellington, and the other islands which fringe 
the Chilian seaboard and merge south-eastwards in the 



GENEPvAL SURVEY 



Fiiegian group. In order to discover any other insular 
formations that may fairly be regarded as geographical 
dependencies of South America, the gaze must sweep the 
eastern horizon to the British groups of the Falklands 
and Georgia in the Austral seas, and farther north to 
another Trinidad and Fernando Noronha, mere specks 
lost in the Atlantic waters, but jealously guarded by the 
Brazilian State. 

Turning westwards, we shall with difficulty detect the 
Malpelo and Cocos rocks claimed by Colombia, while 
attention will be arrested by the relatively large Gala- 
pagos cluster, which, being cut by the equator, belongs 
politically to Ecuador, but, owing to the exceptional 
interest of its fauna and flora, is the common property 
of all naturalists. Still farther south the S. Feliz and 
S. Ambrosio reefs lead along the same meridian (80° W.) 
to the islets of Mas a Fuera and the neighbouring Juan 
Fernandez, the latter for ever associated with De Foe's 
immortal hero, friend of young and old alike. All 
these groups, lying between 25°-35° S. lat., are Chilian 
dependencies. 

Subjoined are tabulated, for purposes of reference, 
some of the leading physiographic points of the twin 
continents : — 



Superficial area 

Extreme length 

Coast-line 

Greatest distance from centre 

to coast 
Culminating point . 

Greatest river drainage area 



North America. 

. 7,100,000 sq. m. 
4,600 miles 
26,000 ,, 

1,800 „ 
18,100 feet 
(iMt. St. Elias) 
. 1,767,000 sq. m. 
(Mississippi-Missouri) 



South America. 

6,880,000 sq. m. 
4,500 miles 
19,000 ,, 

1,700 ,, 

23,080 feet 

(Aconcagua) 

2,722,000 sq. m. 

(Amazon) 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TKAVEL 



Climate of South America 

It is often stated, and indeed assumed, that the climate 
of the western is considerably colder than that of the 
eastern hemisphere. But the assumption has to he taken 
with great reserve. In fact it cannot be accepted as a 
whole, and while perfectly true of North America, this 
somewhat hasty generalisation breaks down completely 
when applied to the southern division. The mean tem- 
perature of insular regions, and physically as well as in 
other respects America is an island, is largely determined 
by the surrounding waters, more so perhaps than by the 
general relief of the land wherever the altitude is not 
excessive. Now South America is washed by two great 
marine currents — the warm Atlantic stream on the east 
side, and the cold Antarctic wave on the Pacific side — and 
these are normally accompanied by corresponding aerial 
currents. Under ordinary conditions such opposites 
might be expected to neutralise each other, or estajjlish 
a general equilibrium. But not so in this continent, 
where the effects of the western cold winds and waters 
are intercepted and confined to a narrow strip of coast- 
lands by the Andes, pierced only in South Patagonia 
by rivers and sounds, whereas on the east side the warm 
marine and atmospheric currents have much freer scope, 
thanks partly to the lower elevation of the Brazilian 
uplands, and also to the great fluvial valleys, through 
which, as through open gates, the tepid Atlantic breezes 
find easy access to the very foot of the Cordilleras. 

Thus it happens that a kind of diagonal climatic 
relation is set up between the twin continents. To the 
narrow Pacific seaboard of South America corresponds 
the Ijroad Atlantic seaboard in the north, with this differ- 



GENEKAL SUKVEY / 9 

ence, that here it is the cold winds and waters that have 
full and almost unimpeded play right across the central 
regions to the foot of the Rocky Mountains. Similarly, 
the conditions on the South American Atlantic coastlands 
are repeated on the North American Pacific coastlands, 
where prevail the warm equatorial currents, and where 
also their range is limited by the great elevation of the 
Sierras and Rockies. Thus is explained the curious 
phenomenon that the mean temperature of North America 
is lower by perhaps 20° F., and that of South America 
higher than, or at least equal to, that of the Afro- 
European regions. 

Why then, it may be asked, is Central Patagonia so 
bleak and arid ? The answer is, partly because the high 
latitude here tells, and also because here the cold Austral 
winds sweep over the plains east of the Andes unimpeded 
by any obstacle till they reach the Tandil and Ventana 
heights between the Colorado basin and the Plate estuary. 
Moreover, if very cold in winter, Patagonia is very hot 
in summer, which may in some measure be explained on 
the cosmic ground that in the southern hemisphere summer 
occurs when the earth is nearest, and winter when it is 
farthest, from the sun. But from this it is not to be in- 
ferred that, as commonly supposed, the southern has as 
a whole a lower mean temperature than the northern 
hemisphere. On the contrary, there are good reasons for 
believing, with the late Professor John Ball, " that the 
southern hemisphere is not colder than the northern, and 
that all arguments based upon an opposite assumption 
must be set aside." ^ 

^ A^tes of a Naturalist in South America, p. 275. 



10 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Relief of the Land — The Inland Seas 

No less simple than its contour- lines is the general 
framework of the southern continent, wliich seems to 
have undergone more than one transformation since 
Secondary times. At first it may be conceived as an 
archipelago, or at least a group of three or four slightly 
connected huge masses much more elevated in the east 
than in the west, and now represented chiefly by the 
greatly denuded Brazilian highlands on the Atlantic, and 
the, at that time, very much lower Andean chain on 
the Pacific side, the latter prolonged eastwards by the 
transverse Sierra de Merida with its eastern extension 
facing the Caribbean Sea, the former prolonged westwards 
by the Central Brazilian uplands. In the south the 
Ventana and Tandil heights projected eastwards to the 
Atlantic without cutting off the old Colorado basin from 
the great inland sea, which probably flowed from the 
northern foot of the Patagonian plateau continuously 
northwards between the Andean and Brazilian uplands to 
the southern slopes of the Sierra de Merida. This great 
" Mediterranean," however, must have been contracted to 
relatively narrow sounds or channels at three points — in 
the south between the Andean and Ventana uplands, 
farther north between the Central Brazilian and Bolivian 
Cordilleras, and again between the Venezuelan and 
Colombian highlands. 

Then, as the Andean system gradually rose higher and 
higher, while the Brazilian was lowered by subsidence 
and a prodigious extent of denudation, the inland waters, 
amid which the Ventana, Cordova, and other smaller 
masses stood out like islands, broken into two or three 
secondary basins by the closing of the narrows at the 



GENEEAL SURVEY 11 

points above indicated. The two northern seas would 
appear to have been somewhat rapidly transformed — 
partly by the abundant sedimentary deposits washed 
down from the encircling hills, partly also perhaps by up- 
heaval — to the fluvial valleys which now constitute the 
Orinoco and Amazon systems. 

But the southern basin, rediscovered, so to say, and 
aptly named the Pampean Sea by Colonel Church,^ 
seems to have persisted longer. Under the twofold 
specified influence this marine inlet became detached 
first from its northern section, the scarcely yet obliter- 
ated Lake Mojos, and was then in due course transformed 
to the boundless diluvial and alluvial valley now 
traversed in all directions by the ramifications of the 
Parana-Paraguay river system. 

Thus were slowly welded together the wholly or 
partly detached masses of former ages, and, that such 
may well have been the geological record of the continent 
thus created, is made highly probable by its present 
constitution, and especially by the extraordinary 
simplicity of its hydrographic and orographic outlines. 
How else explain, for instance, the still surviving inter- 
communications of all these great river systems, inter- 
laced not at their mouths, as we see in the common 
Brahmaputra-Ganges delta, but in their upper reaches, 
where the Orinoco is linked by the Cassiquiare with the 
Amazon, and the Amazon with the Parana by an intricate 
network of channels and backwaters flowing now one 
way, now another. Here the slopes of the divide are so 
gently inclined that a mere snag or a slight landslip 
suffices to divert the currents from one basin to the 
other. " Owing to their horizontality, all the plains 
from the mouth of the Maniore to the Pilcomayo " (that 

1 Geogr. Jour., October 1898. 



12 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

is right across the main Amazon- Parana divide) "are 
inundated from October to March, and present the 
aspect of a great ocean studded with green islands. 
Across the Monde Grande a simply overturned tree would 
change the course of the waters." ^ 

Central Plains — The Great Fluvial Basins 

From the Venezuelan llanos to the Argentine pampas, 
and at one time even to the Patagonian tableland, the 
bed of the postulated inland sea has thus been main- 
tained for many ages nearly at the same dead level, 
slightly upraised or filled in by detritus uniformly 
deposited, without anywhere developing any decided 
water-partings. The marine waters have merely been 
displaced by a single vast fluvial basin, which during the 
summer rains resumes in its upper reaches the aspect of 
a great inland sea many thousand square miles in extent, 
and discharges through three channels into the Atlantic 
Ocean. So fine is the pampean mud that in many 
extensive tracts not a rock or a rolled pebble is to be 
seen. When a native of the Mojos valley, which is still 
covered with this muddy silt, sets out on a journey to 
the neighbouring uplands, he is asked to bring back a 
stone or two that the people may see what such things 
are like. In some districts the old " beached margent 
of the sea" may be followed for many miles, as below 
Eosario, where, " after the pampean beds were formed 
and their southern and eastern margin began to emerge 
from the waters, the ocean along the shallow coast rolled 
up on the gently inclined plain quantities of shells, lianks 
of which, miles in length, may be seen to-day far inland, 
giving evidence, by their curvature and general appear- 

^ Castelnau, quoted by Church, loc. cit. p. 389. 



GENERAL SURVEY 13 

ance, of having been piled up along an ancient coast- 
line." ^ These shells belong to species still living in 
the neighbouring Atlantic waters, and embedded in the 
Pampean formation are also found widely distribiited 
the fossil remains of the mastodon, megatherium, 
mylodon, and other gigantic members of the Pleistocene 
South-American fauna. Such huge beasts, with whom 
early man himself was undoubtedly associated, found 
ample sustenance in the rank vegetation that flourished 
amid the swamps and shallows of the slowly subsiding 
Pampean Sea. The human remains, presenting types 
similar to those of the Botocudos and some other sur- 
viving primitive races, are Ibund distributed over a -wide 
area both in the marine basin and on its eastern and 
western margins. The only liighway between these two 
sections of the continent " must have crossed the elevated 
region at the head of the Pampean Sea, lying between 
17^ and 19° S. lat., wliich is still the only route in use 
for communication by land between Bolivia and Matto 
GrOsso " {ib.). 

In the northern or Amazonian section of the old 
inland sea the evidence of former marine action is quite 
as strong as Church has found it iir the southern section. 
Here are everywhere to be seen horizontal sandstone 
and argillaceous beds ranging from 100 to 1000 feet in 
height, and constituting a vast system of sedimentary 
strata which can be traced from the foot of the Cordillera 
to the Atlantic. Even as far inland as the Pebas terraces 
of the Peruvian Maranon, Or ton noticed thick beds of 
marine shells disposed in layers of diverse coloured clays, 
in which were represented as many as seventeen extinct 
species of late Tertiary times. AVhen those beds were 
formed the Maranon, after forcing its way through the 

1 Church, loc. cit. p. 396. 



14 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Manseriche gorges, must have entered the marine basin 
through an estuary, wliich may be conceived as slowly 
moving eastwards according as the present Amazonian 
plains were filled in. It has even been suggested that 
in the Tertiary epoch the main stream flowed, not east 
to the Atlantic, but through the Orinoco-Negro depression 
towards the Caribbean Sea. In support of this view it 
has been pointed out that the marine shells of the 
Maranon cliffs resemble those of the West Indian waters. 
If so " the bluffs of Monte Alegre, the Santarem heights, 
and the other hills approaching the banks of the Amazon 
at the Obidos narrows, should be regarded as the remains 
of the ridge or dyke which formerly closed the basin of 
the inland sea and of the lakes ascending in terraces up 
the slopes of the Andes to Lake Titicaca." ■* 

The southern (Pampean) section of the ancient 
Mediterranean had a probable length of 1400 miles, w'ith 
a mean breadth of over 400 miles, and an area (including 
the Mojos section, 115,000) of about 715,000 square 
miles. But the drainage area of the present Parana 
basin is, of course, much greater, because it includes all 
the surrounding slopes. It greatly exceeds a million 
square miles, and the other interlaced fluvial systems 
present the same magnificent proportions, as shown in 
the subjoined table of the South American drainage 
arcas,^ where the enormous difference between the 
Atlantic and Pacific domains is specially noteworthy. 
The ancient inland sea was, like the Eurafrican Mediter- 
ranean, an inlet of the Atlantic; consequently the running 
waters by which it has Ijeen replaced continue to dis- 
charge into the same reservoir. 

^ Reelus, vol. xix. p. 99. 

- Prepared on fresh data by Dr. Alois Bliulau for Petermann's Mitt., 
ami reproduced in Geogr. Jour. (June 1897), p. 667. 



GENEEAL SUllVEY 



15 



Atlantic Slope 

Atrato ....... 

Magdalena-l'aiiea ..... 

Coast streams between Maf^clalena and Orinoco 
Orinoco ....... 

Cojist streams, thence to Amazon 
Amazon-Tocantins ..... 

Coast streams, thence to Parnahiba . 
Parnaliiba ...... 

Coast streams, thence to Sao Francisco 
Sao Francisco ...... 

Coast streams, thence to tlie Plate 
Plate-Urnguay ...... 

Colorado-Negro ..... 

Coast streams, thence to Cape Froward 

Total Atlantic 

Pacific Slope 
Colombian rivers .... 
Ecuador ,, 

Peruvian ,, .... 

Chilian „ .... 

Total Pacific 

Inland Drainage 
Lakes Titicaca and Aullagas 
Landlocked basins, thence southwards 

Total Inland 

Su.mmauy 
Atlantic ...... 

Pacific ...... 

Inland ..... 



Total area drainage of South America 



Sq. Miles. 

24,500 
102,500 

94,500 

364,500 

190,500 

2,722,000 

85,500 
133,500 
106,500 
251,500 
333,000 
1,198,500 
464,000 
210,000 

6,382,500 



35,000 

41,500 

125,000 

206,000 

407,500 



76,000 
30,000 

106.000 



6,382,500 
407,500 
106,000 

6,896,000 



Orography -The Andes 

The mountain ranges are laid down on the same 
broad lines, and liere also, while the same symmetry and 



16 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

simplicity are everywhere conspicuous, the presence of a 
later Miocene marine basin seems suggested by the contrasts 
and resemblances of the Andean and Brazilian systems. 
In early Miocene times the Andes must have presented 
the appearance of a low unbroken coast range, still, 
however, elevated enough to form an effective barrier 
between the Pacific and Atlantic basins. But throughout 
the later Miocene and the Pliocene epochs they were 
subjected to the same slow process of upheaval as the 
Alpine and Himalayan systems in the Old World, with 
the result that from Fuegia to the Atrato they constitute 
on their outer (seaward) face one of the loftiest and 
most regular mountain ranges on the globe. 

A nearly due south -north trend is maintained for 
about half its entire length, from the Strait of Magellan 
to Arica in Peru, where it develops a great westward 
curve round to the Gulf of Darien. But throughout 
this northern section the same and even greater symmetry 
is displayed, the rocky walls keeping closer to the sea 
and at some points plunging sheer into the abysmal 
depths. Thanks to this astonishing uniformity, Andes 
(Antis), the native (Quichua) name of the Peruvian 
section, has been naturally extended to the whole 
system by the Spaniards, to whom the Pacific Coast 
Eange as far as Fuegia is known as the Cordillera 
de los Andes, or simply the Cordillera ^ in a pre- 
eminent sense. Its mean altitude, estimated at about 
14,000 feet, is so uniformly maintained that, seen 
from the Pacific, the crest looks like a perfectly regular 
bastion surmounted at intervals by sharp or rounded 
pinnacles, representing either old crystalline rocks or 
else extinct or still active craters. Even the geological 

1 From Corda, a cord or rope, as if to indicate the precision with which 
the crest has been drawn in a line with the coast. 




-^ ^^' 




A Map »l>.j«-;ni; 
THE ANDEAN CILUX. TIIK l!lL\Zn,IA>- mGIIl.iVl«I)S 

AND THE PREHISTORIC INLAND SEAS- 







GENERAL SURVEY 



17 



Ibrmation is everywhere much the same, as shown, for 
instance, by the specimens brought back by the Fitz- 
Gerald expedition from Aconcagua and Tupungato in 
the South and by Mr. Whymper from the equatorial 
Andes in the North (Bonney). The peaks and cones 
themselves, ranging from over 15,000 to 23,000 feet, 
are distributed with singular even-handedness throughout 
the whole system, from the Chilian Aconcagua, Queen 
of the New Warld,^ to the Chimborazo of Ecuador, long 
wrongly supposed to be the culminating point of both 
Americas, but, as shown in the subjoined table, consider- 
ably over-topped by several of the giants in the Cordillera 
itself : — 



Region. 


Peak or Cone. 


Height in Feet 


Authority. 


Bolivia 


Sorata . 


23,500 (?) 


Conway. 


Argentina . 


Aconcagua 


23,080 


FitzGerald. 


Bolivia 


Illimani . 


22,500 


Conway. 


Chile . 


Tupungato 


22,000 


Gus.sfeldt. 


Peru . 


Huasean 


22,000 


Hiudle. 


J) 


Hualcan 


21,000 


Minchin (?), 


,, 


Huandoy 


20,800 


Wiener. 


Ecuador 


Chimborazo . 


20,498 


Whymper. 


>) 


Antisana 


. 19,335 


, 


>> • 


Cayarabe 


19,186 


,, 


Peru . 


Tutupaca 


18,960 


Church. 


,, 


Misti . 


18,500 


Weddell. 


Colombia 


Tolima . 


18,400 


A''ergara. 


,, 


Mesa de Hcrveo 


18,340 


Andre. 


,, 


Huila . 


. 18,000 


Reiss and Stubel. 


Ecuatlor 


Sangai . 


17,464 


)) 


, , , 


lUiniza . 


17,405 




Colombia . 


Ruiz 


17,390 


Vergara. 


Venezuela . 


Concha^ 
Coluna J 


15,420 


Codazzi. 



^ Unless she is to be dethroned by Sorata, whose old claims were 
tentatively revived in 1896 by Sir Martin Conway {Geogr. Jour. November 
1898). 

VOL. I C 



18 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

The Brazilian Uplands 

Between these recently constructed ramparts of the 
Pacific and the rugged weather-beaten Atlantic heights, 
the contrast is in every respect complete. Here sym- 
metry and uniformity are replaced by the wildest con- 
fusion, and instead of young formations still preserving 
their original contour-lines almost intact under, in many 
places, cloudless skies, we have a chaotic grouping of very 
old rocks — crystalUne and Archsean, with schists and early 
sandstones — here and there underlying Cretaceous and 
other Mesozoic deposits, and again exposed, reduced in 
height and carved into a great number of separate sections 
by atmospheric agencies in a region which, for untold 
a?ons, must have always been one of the wettest on the 
globe. " The eastern half of Brazil is undoubtedly ancient 
land, presenting no trace of Secondary strata, except in 
small detached areas near the coast, and where more 
recent Tertiary deposits are to be found only in a portion 
of the great valley of the Amazon. A mountain range, 
having various local designations, but which may best he 
called the Serra ^ da Mantiqueira, extends from the 
neighbourhood of Sao Paulo to the lower course of the 
Itio Sao Francisco for a distance of 1200 miles, and this 
is mainly composed of gneiss, sometimes passing into true 
granite, syenite, or mica-schist; and the same may be 
said of the Serra do ]\'Iar, a less considerable range lying 
between the main chain and the coast. To my mind the 
conclusion is irresistiljle, that ancient Brazil was one of 

^ It should be noticed that in the Portuguese domain the form Serra 
takes the place of the Spanish Sierra, a " saw," in reference to the serrated 
crests of eroded mountain ranges. Similarly the nasal Sao stands for San 
(Saint), as in Sao Francisco (Brazil) and Sa/i, Francisco (California). The 
particles do, da are also contracted Portuguese forms replacing the Spanish 
del, de la ("of the," mas. and fem.). 



GENEKAL SURVEY 19 

the greatest mountain regions of the earth, and that its 
summits may very probably have exceeded in height any 
now existing in the world. What we now behold are 
the ruins of the ancient mountains, and the singular coni- 
cal peaks are, as Liais has explained, the remains of some 
harder masses of metamorphic gneiss, of which the strata 
were tilted at a high angle." ^ 

Thus, while the Cordillera has been steadily rising 
till it forms the loftiest range on the globe next to the 
Himalayas, the Brazilian system has been worn down to 
a mean altitude of probably not more than 4000 or 5000 
feet. Even the culminating point of Brazil — Itatiaya 
(Itatiaiossii), in the Mautiqueira range, falls below 10,000 
feet, and is reduced by some measurements to no more 
than 8900 feet. The loftiest peak of the picturesque 
" Organs " group in the Serra do Mar is little over 6600 
feet, while those of the ranges forming the divides between 
the Sao Francisco and the Tocantins and other southern 
affluents of the Amazon nowhere exceed 6000 feet. In 
the extreme north the Pacaraima chain towards the 
Cruiana and Venezuelan frontiers terminates in the 
mighty Eoraima mass (7384), which is a point on the 
recently determined British-Venezuelan frontier. Paca- 
raima consists also of very old (Archaean and Palaeozoic) 
formations, and its base must have been washed by 
the ancient South -American Mediterranean. Farther 
west the still more elevated Guamapi range culminates 
in Mount Icutu, which has an estimated altitude of 
11,000 feet. 

Subsidence and Upheaval 

That subsidence as well as erosion has contributed to 
modify the character of the old Brazilian Alps is evident 
^ Ball, op. cit. p. 314 sq. 



20 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

from the now well-established fact, that while the land 
has gained on the Pacific side it has been largely en- 
croached upon by the Atlantic waters on the Brazilian 
seaboard. Hence the remark made by some physio- 
graphists that South America is moving westwards, and 
is now nearer to Australia and farther from Africa than 
in Secondary times. On the coast of Chile there are 
terraces due to erosion, but also others which are unques- 
tionably marine beaches, affecting the form of flights of 
steps, and strewn to a height of over 1000 feet with thick 
beds of shells belonging to the species still surviving in 
the neighbouring seas. 

But the opposite phenomenon is seen on a large scale 
on the Atlantic side, and especially about the Amazon 
estuary. Here the long-continued invasions of the sea 
are not only arresting the formation of a delta by dis- 
tributing the sedimentary matter all round the shelving 
shores of Guiana, but are, so to say, transforming the 
great estuary to a marine gulf. The main stream has 
already lost over 400 miles of its lower course, and the 
old river banks are now permanently flooded as far sea- 
wards as the 100-fathom line. Hence it is that the 
Parnahyba and several otlier streams which formerly 
joined the south bank now find their way to the coast 
in independent channels. Even the Tocantins has almost 
ceased to be an attiuent of the Amazon, with which it is 
connected only by an intricate system of shifting lateral 
branches. 

Flora 

One of the most eloquent passages in Buckle's History 
of Civilisation in England was inspired by the study of 
animal and vegetable life in Brazil, which, excluding the 
Andean plateaux and the narrow southern extremity. 



PHYSICAL AND BIOLOGICAL RELATIONS 21 

may be taken as in this respect the typical region, of the 
whole continent. It is pointed out that the progress of 
mankind beyond the savage state has here been retarded, 
and even arrested, by the prevailing excess of heat and 
moisture, a combination far more favourable to the de- 
velopment of vegetation and of the lower than of the 
higher animal organisms. Hence no other region of the 
globe except the ]\Ialay lands, where like conditions pre- 
vail, can compare with South America in the relative 
extent, vigour, and variety of its forest growths, and of 
its exuberant insect life. For a vivid picture of sunless 
and trackless w^oodlands of boundless extent, the miud 
turns less readily to the Congo forest zone, vast though it 
be, than to the densely-timbered AmazoniEin plains, which 
are continued with little interruption far up the eastern 
slopes of the Cordillera, through the Guianas round to 
the shady rivers Magdalena and Atrato in the far north- 
west, and in other directions over a great part of 
Southern Brazil, of Corrientes and Gran Chaco, traversed 
by all the northern and western head-waters of the 
Parana-Paraguay system. 

Even in the uplands a rich arborescent vegetation 
creeps up to within 3000 feet of the snow-line, which, 
however, is here, as elsewhere, a " variable quantity," 
depending, as it does, not so much on latitude as on the 
aspect of the land, light and shade, moisture and other 
local conditions. Indeed :\Ir. Whymper objects to the 
expression altogether, seeing " little utility in retaining a 
phrase which is incapable of definition, and is interpreted 
so variously " (p. 347). In the Cordilleras it seems to 
range from as low as 1 4,500 to 16,700 and even 17,000 
feet, and this must be so especially in the equatorial 
region, where flowering plants, such as gentians, ranun- 
culi, geraniums, mallows, fuchsias, verbenas, asters, and 



22 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

other comiMsitce occur between 14,000 and 16,000 feet. 
Mosses and lichens mantle the summit of Corazon 
(15,870), and on other slopes reach much higher, while 
currant bushes and tall grasses 8 to 9 feet high fall little 
below 14,000 feet. 

In the same region, and as far south as Bolivia, the 
eastern escarpments of the plateaux exposed to the 
moist are -bearing Atlantic breezes are clothed with coni- 
fers and other forest growths up to an altitude of 11,500 
or perhaps even 12,000 feet. So numerous are the 
indigenous useful species both in the montana, as these 
wooded uplands are called, and almost everywhere in the 
Amazonian and the other great fluvial basins, that since 
the discovery Europe has derived more alimentary, 
medicinal, and other economic plants from South America 
than from any other quarter of the globe. Such are the 
potato with its cousin the tomato, tobacco, maize, yams, 
Brazil nuts, ground-nuts, guava, the pine-apple, rubber, 
ipecacuanha, sarsaparilla, cacao, coca, chinchona, ^ and 
several cabinet-woods. 

In the Brazilian uplands the tropical flora ranges 
southwards to the Santos district of the province of Sao 
Paulo beyond Capricorn. Here " trees and shrubs in 
wonderful variety contend for the mastery, and maintain 
a precarious struggle for existence with a crowd of 
climbea's and parasites. So dense is the mass of vegeta- 
tion that it is impossible to penetrate in any direction 
farther than a few yards, and there is no choice but to 
follow the track that leads to the summit of the slope." " 

A general survey of the South American flora reveals 

^ The very best species of this quinine-yielding plant have only lately 
been discovered in the forests about the sources of the Inamliari, an 
affluent of the Madre de Dios draining the Peruvian province of Caravaya 
(Sir CI. Markhara, Geogr. Jour. (Feb. 1896), p. 188). 

- Ball, p. 307. 



PHYSICAL AND BIOLOGICAL RELATIONS 



23 



an exceptional number of indigenous types, especially 
of flowering plants. Some of these may, no doubt, have 
originated in the Cordilleras : but the chief area of birth 
and dispersion would appear to have been the older 




CHIXCHO:SA. 



Brazilian highlands, at a time when they enjoyed a 
climate suitable for such developments. " At a period 
when physical conditions in the lower regions of the 
earth's surface were widely different, and the proportion 
of carbonic acid gas present in the atmosphere was very 
much greater than it has been since the deposition of the 



24 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVKL 



coal-measures, it was only in the liigher regions of great 
mountain countries that conditions prevailed at all 
similar to tliose now existing." Hence, " if the early 
types of flowering jJants were confined to the high moun- 
tains, we could not expect to find their remains in deposits 




formed in shallow lakes and estuaries, until after the 
probably long period during which they were gradually 
modified to adapt them to altered physical conditions." 
It is therefore on the ancient Brazilian uplands that we 
should look for " the ancestors of the many forms of vege- 
tation which have stamped their character on the vegetation 
of the continent" (ih. p. 318). 



PHYSICAL AND BIOLOr.ICAL DELATIONS 



25 



Fauna 

Xo more striking illustration of Buckle's broad infer- 
ence could be afforded than the remarkable fact that, 
from the re«;ion wliich has enriched civilisation with 



'OTf 



^■:. 





so many valuable economic plants, the Old World has 
obtained not a single useful animal. The aborigines 
themselves had domesticated the llama (which, like its 
Asiatic congener, was endowed with a somewhat morbid 
temperament, I'endering it useless for the rough work of 



26 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

cultured peoples in other lands), and the alpaca, guinea- 
pig, and alco, all, however, confined to the limits of the 
Peruvian empire. There are many indigenous forms, 
some, like the tapir, peccari, jaguar, spectacled bear, 
puma, cayman, rhea (" ostrich "), and several of the lower 
anthropoid apes, allied to the corresponding genera or 
orders in the eastern hemisphere, and often presenting 
much interest to naturalists. But all these and the many 
other native species — sloth, vampire, ant-eater, agouti, 
tree-porcupine, viscacha, anaconda, toucan, humming.-bird, 
and others — are of little or no economic use. 



The South American Neogseic Eealm 

In Prof. Lydekker's scheme of the geograpical dis- 
tribution of mammals, South America, with the West 
Indies and the central peninsulas and isthmuses as far 
north as South Mexico, constitutes the " Xeogteic Eealm," 
that is to say, the zoological zone which is most character- 
istic of the New World and has least in common with 
the Old.^ The reference, of course, is not to post-Columbian 
times, during which the region has been peopled by 
multitudes of such useful animals as the horse, ox, sheep 
and pig, but to the lowest Miocene age, when Soutli 
America was an area of evolution and dispersion for many 
generalised ^ animal as well as vegetable forms. 

At that time the South American fauna differed far 
more than it does at present from that of the rest of the 

' A Geographical History of Mammals, Cambridge, 1896. 

'^ By a generalised type or form, to which is opposed specialised, is under- 
stood, in biological language, an organism of lower or less complicate 
structure from which spring liigher organisms in diverging lines of develop- 
ment. Thus from a common simian ancestor of relatively simple 
structure are derived the higher man-like apes by slow processes of 
specialisation extended over long periods of time. 



PHYSICAL AND BIOLOGICAL RELATIONS 27 

world. This may be accounted for by its isolation from 
the northern continent before the completion of the land- 
connection at the isthmus of Panama in the late Miocene 
epoch. In any case it is placed beyond doubt by the 
extraordinary profusion of peculiar mammalian and other 
animal remains of the Pleistocene, if not even of the 
Pliocene tertiary epoch, found in various districts, especially 
of South Brazil and Argentina. Such sites as the Lagoa 
Santa caves of Minas Geraes, the so-called " Pampean beds " 
of the Pampas, and the vast shell-mounds (" kitchen- 
middens ") of the seaboard north and south of the Plate 
estuary, have yielded great quantites of the bones of such 
gigantic creatures as the mastodon, the .ground-sloth, 
mylodon, and many others, often in the closest association 
with those of early man himself, thus showing that these 
monsters had survived down to comparatively recent 
(Pleistocene) times. ' What has become of them ? What 
has become of the extensive forest growth in which some 
of them found congenial homes, and which at that time 
covered large tracts of the now treeless Pampas plains ? 
" During the whole time that the alluvial deposits of the 
Parana and Paraguay rivers were being laid down, and 
well on into the human period, the mammalian fauna of 
the Pampean epoch continued to flourish, until there came 
a complete sweep of all the larger forms, clearing oft' the 
whole of the ground-sloths, glyptodonts, mastodons, toxo- 
donts, horses, sabre-toothed tigers, and the larger members 
of the camel tribe, and in the Argentine leaving only 
armadillos, guanacos, a few deer, a number of rodents, 
various cats and foxes, as well as skunks, to represent the 
vast assemblage of strange and giant creatures that once 
roamed over its plains. Still more remarkable is the 
former abundance of gigantic ant-eaters, dependent on 
forests for their existence, in the tracts now occupied by 



28 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



the coast deserts of Tarapaca. It is practically certain 
that the clean sweep of the forests of Argentina and the 
larger mammals of the whole of South America is not 
due to the hand of man. 

The problem is further complicated by the circumstance 
that the fossil remains of nearly all the larger animals 




AllMADlLLO. 



which formerly inhabited the Pampas are also found in 
the caverns of Brazil, where the climate is now, and 
probably always has been, tropical. Up to the present it 
is, accordingly, impossible to account satisfactorily for the 
disappearance of all the larger forms from among the 
mammalian fauna of South America." ^ May the ultimate 

1 Lydekker, p. 121. 



PHYSICAL AND BIOLOGICAL RELATIONS 29 

solution be found in Colonel Church's restored Pampean 
Sea, taken in connection with the gradual wearing down 
of the Brazilian Alps and the consequent change of climate, 
making the enviroimientj as indicated by Buckle, no 
longer favourable for the existence of large animal forms ? 



CHATTEE II 

EARLY ETHICAL RELATIONS 

Inhabitants of South America — Primitive man in South America of two 
Types — Physical Characters of the Aborigines — Their Polysynthetic 
Sjjeech — Number and Distribution of tlie South-American Languages 
— The Lingoa Geral — Table of the South-American Stock Races and 
Languages — General Culture — Contrasts between North and South 
— Iso-cultural Zones — The Cultureless Zone — The civilised Zone. 

Inhabitants of South America 

But from the cataclysm, if such it was, which swept away 
the old Pampeau fauna, mau survived. That he had 
spread in early Pleistocene times from his eastern cradle 
to the New World by probably two routes — from Europe 
by the still persisting land-connection with Greenland 
and Labrador, and from Asia by the narrow Bering 
Strait — has been placed beyond reasonable doubt by the 
discovery of his works and even of his remains in many 
parts of the western hemisphere. These fossil remains, 
representing both of the two primordial types, which may 
be called the long-headed Afro-European ^ and the round- 
headed Asiatic, are, strange to say, found in far greater 
alrandance in the southern than in the northern division. 

^ In this compound expression the first term has no reference to the 
African Negro, but to the African Haniite of C'aucasic type, wlio passed 
with the Pleistocene fauna into South and West Europe, and tiieuce pre- 
sumably to the New World. 



EARLY ETHICAL RELATIONS 31 

In fact North America has nothing to show of early man 
himself apart from his handiwork, except the still some- 
what doubtful round-headed " Calaveras skull " from the 
gold-bearing Californian drift ; whereas numerous crania 
and even skeletons of both types have been found widely 
distributed between the numerous paraderos, or ancient 
settlements of the Pampas beds in Argentina, the Lagua 
Santa caves, and the samhaqui or shell-mounds strewn 
along the coast from Santa Catherina in Brazil to and 
beyond the Plate estuary. A skull of round shape was 
found by Eoth under the carapace of a huge glyptodon 
near Pontimelo, and another by Lund in the Lagoa Santa 
district, where, however, the long-heads greatly pre- 
dominated, as they did also in the paraderos, in the shell- 
heaps on l)oth sides of the Plate estuary, and as far north 
as Santarem and Marajo Island in the Amazon estuary. 

Few fossil remains of early man have yet been 
brought to light in Patagonia, and none in Fuegia. But 
his presence in both regions is attested by the numerous 
stone implements found deeply embedded in the banks 
of the liio Negro, and in the very old shell-mounds of 
vast size occurring in several parts of the Puegian Archi- 
pelago. One of these rivals if it does not exceed those 
of the Brazilian and Buenos Ayres seaboard in age and 
extent. Lovisato describes it as still nearly a mile 
long, although greatly eroded by the waves, and rising 24 
feet above the present sea-level, while the shells of whicli 
it mostly consists are much larger than the correspondin'4 
species now inhabiting the surrounding waters. 



Primitive Man in South America of two Types 

From these and many other data, which need not 
here be further specified, the inference seems inevitable 



32 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

that South America was already iii Pleistocene times 
peopled to its utmost limits by the two primitive races 
that still persist in the same region. The long-heads 
are believed to have been the first arrivals, and their 
subsequent migrations from the early settlements in South 
Brazil and Argentina have been followed in all directions, 
north to Guiana, east to the Sao Francisco and to the 
Botocudos of the Aimores Coast Eange, west to Santa 
and even to Ancon on the shores of the Pacific, south to 
the long-headed Onas and Yahgans of Fuegia. 

Later came the round-heads, keeping generally to the 
Pacific side, and in pre-Columbian times developing 
several centres of culture, such as those of the Muyscas 
(Chibchas), Yuncas (Chimus), Quichuas (Peruvians), 
Aymaras or Collas (Bolivians), along the line of Andean 
plateaux from the Cundinamarca district in Colombia to 
Chile. With these might be grouped the ruder but more 
vigorous Chilean Aucas (Araucas, Araucanians), who 
spread eastwards to the Colorado and Negro rivers, where 
they were till lately represented by the round-headed 
Puelches, not to be confounded with the more primitive 
long-headed Tehuelches or Chuelches. The former were 
the Pampas Indians, the latter the Patagonians of the 
early writers, but both are now either extinct or swept 
into reservations. 

With the arrival of the round-heads, probably before 
the close of the Pleistocene age, what may be called 
the first settlement of the land was completed. After 
that, till the advent of the Avhite man, no serious contri- 
butions could have been drawn from any quarter, the 
long narrow isthmian links between north and south 
preventing invasions in numbers sufficiently large to 
overcome the resistance of those already in possession of 
the rugged Colombian uplands. From this rapid survey 



EAKLY ETHICAL EELATIONS 33 

we may therefore conclude that the constituent elements 
of the true aborigines were twofold — long-heads of un- 
known origin and short-headed Asiatic Mongoloids, the 
former mainly in the east, the latter mainly in the west. 
Before the subsidence of the great inland sea the two 
groups must have kept somewhat apart, each advancing 
or lagging behind in the general onward movement of 
human development, in conformity with the more or less 
favourable character of their respective environments. 
But after the disappearance of the intervening waters, 
impassable by populations whose knowledge of navigation 
never at any time advanced beyond the rudimentary 
state, contacts hostile or friendly become more frequent, 
and free intercommunications established especially along 
the transverse line of the low water-parting, as above in- 
dicated by Colonel Church. 



Physical Characters of the Aborigines 

Thus were gradually softened or even blurred the at 
first sharply contrasted Mongolic and Caucasic features, 
so that we have now rather a general Mongolo-Caucasic 
type, which may rightly be called American. It is a 
Ijlend of scarcely yet specialised European and Asiatic 
characters, further modified in a new environment, just 
as these were themselves developed from a generalised 
Pleistocene ancestor in their respective environments. 
So true is this thfit the latest and best observers, such as 
Dr. Ehrenreich ^ and his associates, declare that these 
aborigines are a product of the soil, like all other long- 
isolated organisms, and are no more Mongols than they 
are Caucasians. 

^ See especially this traveller's masterly treatise on The Aborigines of 
Brazil, Brunswick, 1897. 

VOL. 1 D 



34 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TPtAVEL 

They even go further, and assert that the South 
Americans approximate on the whole nearer to the 
Caucasic than to the Asiatic, so that we have travelled 
far from the days when ethnologists thought they had 
settled matters by writing off the inhabitants of the New 
World as " a branch of the Mongol stock." From the 
Caucasic they have inherited a tall stature, fairly sym- 
metrical frames, round straight eyes, large, straight or 
aquiline nose, and, as should be expected, all these 
traits are most conspicuous on the east side. To the 
Mongol they are indebted for their long, lank, black hair, 
large though not very prominent cheek-bones, and a 
yellowish-brown complexion, which often shades off to a 
lightish brown or a coppery tinge, with little trace of 
yellow or of the " red " hue popularly attributed to them. 
To the Mongol may also be in some measure due that 
sullen, or at least, reserved, and outwardly impassive 
temperament, wliich is so highly characteristic of those 
aborigines, and is at the same time so strongly illustrated 
in their peculiarly heavy and massive speech. 

Their Polysynthetic Speech 

But this speech is entirely their own, so much so 
that not even its germs can any longer be traced to the 
Old AVorld. The American differs from all other linguistic 
groups not merely in its vocabulary and grammatical 
structure, but in its very morphology, so that it must be 
classed, like plant or animal forms, in an order ajjart 
from all others. The germs, no doubt, were brought 
with their Pleistocene ancestors from the eastern hemi- 
sphere, but in the process of evolution in their new homes 
have been obliterated past recovery. 

This very evolution itself has resulted in the new 



EAHLY ETHICAL EELATIONS 35 

" Order," which takes the name of 'poly synthesis, to indi- 
cate its most striking feature, that is, a tendency to 
extreme synthesis or composition, in virtue of which all 
the words of the sentence may be merged in a single term 
often of prodigious length. Such massive expression of 
heavy thought is effected partly by syncope, that is, by 
clipping and cutting down the several words themselves, 
by which, for instance, regn-boga is reduced through r6n- 
hoga to rainbow ; but mainly by embodying the relational 
elements, attributes and even the nominal object in the 
verbal root, so that it becomes impossible to say " I 
strike," but synthetically " I-man-strike-dog " (or some 
other object) repeatedly (or in some other way), etc., all 
in a breath. Now this strange mode of thought and 
expression, which is absolutely unknown elsewhere, 
prevails, with a few trifling and explicable exceptions, 
throughout the whole continent from Alaska to Fuegia, 
as may be seen by two such examples as the Eskimo 
igdlorssualiortugssarsiumavq and the Hipurina (Amazonian) 
Nicugacaigaturumatinii. Here culture-stages make not 
the slightest difference, and the cultivated Aztec and 
Quichuan are cast in precisely the same mould as the rude 
Tarascan or Patasonian. 



Number and Distribution of the South- American Languages 

Another point to be noticed is the extraordinary 
number of stock languages, which are variously estimated 
for the whole continent at from 100 to 200 or more, 
for nobody exactly knows, and of these perhaps one half 
may be assigned to South America. By stocks are to 
be understood linguistic groups which have nothing in 
common beyond their general poly synthetic character, 
and are as irreducible to a single mother- tongue as are, for 



36 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AJSTD TRAVEL 

instance, the Semitic and Aryan groups in the Old World. 
In the whole of Europe there are only two such stocks, 
— Aryan and Basque, Finno-Turki being a comparatively 
recent intruder. How then are perhaps fifty times more 
current amongst an indigenous population thirty or forty 
times less ? It is a wonderful phenomenon, as inexplic- 
able as is the total disappearance of the Pleistocene fauna 
and flora. 

Attention should here be called to the extremely 
irregular distribution of these linguistic groups, which, as 
in North America, are mostly crowded together in small 
spaces on the west side of the continent, where one alone 
— Quichua-Aymara — ranges over a wide domain, not 
however, conterminous, as is often assumed, with that of 
the old Peruvian empire. In the central and eastern 
regions there are several such linguistic families, notably 
the Carib, Arawak, and especially Tupi-Guarani, which 
are spread over vast areas, and the hmits of which have 
even been enlarged by recent exploration. Thus the 
Carib, hitherto supposed to have originated either in 
Guiana or the Antilles, if not even on the North- 
American mainland, spreading thence southwards a little 
beyond the Orinoco basin, is now shown to have had its 
cradle about the head-waters of the Xingu and other 
southern affluents of the Amazon in the very heart of 
the continent, whence the migratory movements were 
directed northwards to the West Indies if not even to 
Florida, before that peninsula was occupied by the 
Seminoles. 

The Lingoa Geral 

Owing to other causes, of a social and political rather 
than of an ethnical nature, a still wider expansion has 
been given, not to the Tupi-Guarani race, but to the 



EARLY ETHICAL RELATIONS 37 

Tupi-Guarani language, which has become the so-called 
lingoa gcral} that is, the " general language," the lingua 
franca, or common medium of intercourse, not only 
amongst the natives but even amongst some of the 
mixed European populations throughout half the continent. 
With the development of missionary enterprise the 
Jesuits, who from the first took a foremost part in this 
work, soon discovered that their operations were greatly 
hampered by the multiplicity of local dialects, to which 
the neophites clung with great tenacity. To force upon 
them their own Spanish or Portuguese tongue was found 
to be impossible, so that the only alternative was 
the adoption of some native form of speech, the 
genius of which would be better suited to their mental 
capacity. 

For the Andean plateau regions the Quichuan of the 
Peruvian empire was naturally selected, and for the rest 
of the continent the still more widespread Guarani-Tupi, 
whose numerous branches ramified over a great part of 
the Amazon and Upper Parana basins, and were also 
current amongst the numerous Tupi tribes of the 
Brazilian seaboard. Preference was eventually given to 
one of these Tupi forms, which was accordingly introduced 
into all the stations throughout the Portuguese and 
many of the Spanish possessions, especially about the 
Parana-Paraguay confluence. All the natives resorting 
to the Missions were required to learn this " common 
speech," which was also taught in the schools, employed 
in the pulpit, and used for general administrative 
purposes. 

This policy was attended by permanent and far-reaching 

^ This Portuguese form has taken precedence of the Spanisli Icngaa 
general, because the Brazilian lingua franca has obtained far greater cur- 
rency than that adopted for the Andean regions. 



38 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



results. Having once realised the advantage of such 
a general medium of intercourse, the natives continued to 
avail themselves of it even after the expulsion of the 
Jesuits and the suppression of the missions, and although 
afterwards many of the tribes relapsed into paganism 
and the savage state. Thus it has come about that the 
dialect of an obscure coast tribe, slightly modified and 
reduced to written form by European missionaries, has 
become widely diffused throughout Brazil, Paraguay, 
Corrientes, and some other parts of Argentina. It 
appears to be still spreading amongst the aborigines, and, 
like Quichuan in Pervi and Maya in Yucatan, is even 
current amongst some of the mixed European communities 
themselves. 

In the subjoined table all the chief South American 
peoples are grouped as far as possible according to their 
respective stock languages, which, in the midst of so 
much physical uniformity, are found to be the most 
convenient if not the only means of classification. It 
should be noted that although many are stated to be 
" extinct," this does not necessarily mean extirpation, but 
often nothing more than disappearance, by absorption in 
the politically or socially dominant people. 

SOUTH AMERICAN STOCK RACES AND LANGUAGES 



Stocks. 


Main Divisions. 


Domain. 




\ 


Nutihara, Tataba, Chmcd, "\ 
Tuneho j 


Cauca Valley. 


Chibcha 


"\ 


Paucura, Petacay, Timha, ^ 


Head-waters of R. Mag- 




Pastu j 


dalena. 


Choco 




Baudo, Tado, Noanama, Citarae . 


Rs. Atrato and San Juan. 


Paeze . 




Colima, Manipo, Naura 


Upper Magdalena. 


COCONUCO 


{ 


Barbacoa, Cayapa, Cuaiquerre, \ 
Mocao j 


Colombia-Ecuador frontiers 



EAKLY ETHICAL RELATIONS 



39 



Stocks. 



QuiTU 



Chinchasuyu^ 



Inca 



Aymara 

(collasuyu) 1 



" Yunca" 
Chango 

HUANCA 



Main Divisions. 



Cayambe, Puritacxi,, Cvllahuasa, 
Linguachi, CataJballu 

Cara ..... 

Carangue . . . . . 

Llacta-cunca, Amhatu, Mucha,^ 
Puruhu, TiquisamM, Saroi, 
Caf>ari, Palta {near Loja), 
Zaizu [about Zaruma) ^ 

H'uancacilca . . . ■■ 

Manta . . . . , 

Tacami . . . - . 

Ayahuaca (Cassa and Callua) 

Huancapampa 
Huacrachucv 

Chacha [OJiacluqmya) 

Cajamarca . 
Huamadiucu 

Conchucu 
Huanucu 

Huanca 
Hucana, Sora 

ChoMca 

Inca . 

Quichua 

Cana, Canche 

Colla . 

Lupaca 

Pacasa 

Carangua, Quillaca 

Uru {of Puquina speech) 

Galchaqxii {of Quichua speech 

Aiacameno (1) . 

Chiviu, Lambayaque [both of Mo- 
ckica speech) 



Pre- Inca race {now of Quichva 
speech) 



Nortli of Quito. 

Coast, Charapcato to Cape 

S. FraucisfO. 
Bordering on tlie Pastus. 



South of Quito. 

I. of Pana aud coast to Pta. 

Sta. Elena. 
Coast N. of Huancavilcas. 
Coast at Atacames. 

N. to borders of Quitu Do- 
main. 

Near Jaen de Bracanioras. 

Both sides of Maranon gorges 

Mountains on right banlv 
Maranon. 

Cajamarca Valley. 

Lower down on the Maranon. 

Maranon and head-waters 
of coast streams. 

Head- waters of R. Huallaga. 

Jauja and Torma Valleys. 
In the Coast Cordillera. 
From Gnauta to the R. 

Apurimac. 
Cuzco and Vilcamayu Valley. 
Rs. Apurimac and Pacha- 

choca. 
Head-waters R. Vilcamayu. 

N. of L. Titicaca. 
W. side L. Titicaca. 
E. side L. Titicaca. 
S. side L. Titicaca. 
S.-W. corner L. Titicaca. 
Prov. Tucuman and south- 
ern parts of Gran Chaco. 
Atacama district. 

Prov. Trujillo. 

Tarapaca. 

Peruvian Coast i'rom Par- 
niunca to Acari (9°-14°S.) 



40 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Main Divisions. 



Antisutu 



Jevkro 

(JiVARO) 



Zapauo 



Betoye 



Pano 



TiCUNA, Ta- j 
CUNA, OB - 
JOMANA 



JURI 



Tacana 



Lego . . ^ 

(Mosetene) j 



PaRus 

Groups. 



M 



Mojos I 

Groups, "i 



Barre 



Anti or Campa 



Chunclw : — 

Huachipayri, Tuyuneri, Sirin- \ 
eyri j 



Caranga, Suchimani . 

Aguaruna, Antipao, HuavMsa, 
Ibanoma, Iquito, Cotopasa, 
Pindo, Paute 

A huishiri, A ndoa, Curaraye, " 
Matagene, Mauta, Nugamu, 
Nushinu, Rotuno, Shiripuno, 
Sinchictu, Supinu, Tiputini, 
Yasuni 

Pioje, Ocoguage . 

Ele, Situja 

Tama, Acanejo . 

Aniaguage, Correguagc, Cence- 
guage, Zeona 

Uav.pe, Tucano . 

A guana, Cholone, Motilone, 
Jibito, Ajuana 

Amcjuara, Pirro, Capanahua, 
Cashibo, C'onibo, Remo, Setebo, 
Shipibo, Send 

Caruana, Jajunuma, Javiolapa, 
Picuama, Jocacurama, Mali- 
numa, Lamarama, Varauama, 
Urizsama 

Juri-coma, Oacao, Moira,'\ 
Assai, Curassi, Oira A pi, \ ■■ 
Tucano, Ubi, Uebytu, Ta- | 
boca ) : 

Araona, Equari, Maropa, Tumii- 
pasa, Maracani, Tm-omona, 
Pucopacari 

Guarayo, Siriona, Jacare ■ 

CanaviaH, Catacaji, Aqxiiri,^ 
Gutuquira, Hipurina, Jama- \ 
mart, Maneteneri, Pammary, j 
Puru-Puru J 

Baur^, Movimo, Erinima, Tapa-'\ 
cur a, Ronama,Caniciana, Sapi, | 
Bolepa, Tiboi, Rotoronno, Pe- j 
chicyo, Mure, Cayababa J 

Tapacuraca, Napaca, Paunaca, \ 
Paiconeca, Quitemoca, Man- . 
caca, Zuracarijuia I 



Upper Ucayali and its 
affluents. 



Forests E. of Cuzco. 

Prov. Caravaya, E. of Tur- 

ina in Peru. 
Between Rs. GhincMpe and 

Pastasa ; and both sides 

R. Maraiiou. 

R. Napo basin, and thence 
to the R. Pastasa ; about 
12,000 sq. miles. 

Rs. Napo and Putuniayo. 

R. Casanare. 

Rs. Yari and Cagua. 

lis. Gaqueta and Rutumayo 

R. Uaupe. 

R. Huallaga. 

R. Ucayali. 



Rs. Putiimayo and Maranoi 
about Tabatinga. 



R. Amazon, between Rs. 
Putuniayo ad Japura and 
Rio Negro. 

Upper Madre de Dios Basin. 

Tipuani affluent of R. Beni. 

Rio Purus. 

Rs. Maniore and Bfiii. 



Rs. Cassiquiare, JIaraina 
and Upper Negro. 



EARLY ETHICAL RELATIONS 



41 



Stocks. 


Main Divisions. 


DOMAIX. 


CURETU . 


Isanna(?) Uaenambu{?) 


Bet. R.S. Japura and Uaupe. 


Cababuyana - 


Caraguana, Pocoana, Moacarana, \ 
Yaribaru, Mariguyana, Taru- \ 
caguaca J 

Atoi-ai, Wapisiana, Amaripa 


R. Japura below Basururu 
confluence. 


British C4uiana. 




Alaypure, Baniva 


R. Orinoco. 




Yuana, Marawa, . 




\l. Amazon. 


Arawak . - 


Goajiro {?), Cocina (?) 




(xoajira Peninsula. 




Vaura, Mahinacu 




Upper Xingu. 




Parexi, Cahsi 




Upper Tapajos. 




Kwana, Layana . 




Upper Paraguay. 




A rawan 




Marajos Is. 




Bakairi, Nahuquu 




Upper Xingu. 




Pamella 




Lower Guapore. 




Apiaca {Apeiaca) 




Lower Tocantins. 




Apoto, Wayawai . 




Brazilian Guiana. 


Caeie . . ■ 


Galibi, Rucuyenne 




French „ 


Galina 




Dutch 




Akawai, Arecuna, Macusi, Para- 
mona 


1 British 




Makirifare, Mayongeong 


Venezuelan ,, 




Uitoto, Coreguaji, Carijina . 


Upper Yapura. 


^ 


Qalib {Carib) .... 


Is. St. Vincent, Honduras. 


Warrau 


Guarauno 


Coast between Rs. Orinoco 
and Corentjnis. 




Tupinainia, Tanuyo . 


Lower Amazon, E. Para. 




Tupajaro, Temba. 


R. Para. 




Jacunda, Pacaia, Tecuna-Pena . 


Lower Xingu. 




Aneto, Manitsawa, Camay ura 


Upper Xingu. 




JEmerillun, Ovampi 


French Guiana. 




Goajire, Tocantins 


R. Tocantins. 




Oiuagua, Cocdma 


Lr. Huallaga and Maraiion. 


Tupi . 


Petiguare ..... 


R. Parahiba. 




Cahete 


R. Sao Francisco. 




Tupininquin .... 


Prov. Espirito Santo. 




Tapiguae . . . . ' 


Coast from Pernambuco to 
St. Paulo. 




Tupinambaze . . . [ 


Provs. Bahia, Sergipe, and 
Pernambuco. 




Tummimivi, Tamoiae . 


Rio de Janeiro. 


f 


Mundrucu .... 


R. Tapajos and right bank 
Amazon. 




Mauhe: Tatu, Tasiuha, Guari-'\ 


Between Rs. Tapajos and 




ba, Inamba, Caribwna / 


Amazon. 


Guarani . < 


Chiriguano, Siriono . . [ 


Gran Chaco and S.E. Bo- 
livian frontiers. 




Guarani proper . . . [ 


Paraguay, Entre-Rios, Mis- 
iones. 




Guarayi ..... 


Now in Mojos Missions. 


V 


Diaguite ..... 


Prov. Tucumau. 

1 



42 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Main Divisions. 



Chiquito ( I 
Group 1 I 

BORORO . 

f\ 



I Ges . 

(Tapuya) 



Payagtja 



Charrua 
Abipone or/ 
Callagae \^ 

LULE . . i 

Mataguayo \ 
(Mataco) J 



MOCOBI 
TOBA 

C'HURUMATA \ 
AND CHICHAS - 

Orejones J 
Guaycuru 

Araucano . < 

PUELCHE \ 

(Gknnaken) J 
Tehuelche 
Yahgan and ) 

Alacaluf J 



Tapacuraca, Napaca, Paunaca, 
Paiconeca, Quitemoca, Mon- 
coca, Ziiracanguia 

Yaraye 

Botocudo {BuTung) 

Camacan, Patacho, Massaco. 

Gayapo {North) . 

Cayapo ( West), or Suyo 
Cayapo [South) . 
Akua {Cherente, Chavante) 
Caraya, Aruma . 
Apiacare 

Payagua proper . 

Chacamoco, Angaite, Sancqxma 

Cadjuevo . . ■ . 

Minuane, Cruenoa 
Naquegtgaguehee, Rucahee, Ja- 

coniaga, 
Lule proper, Vilela : Ontoampa, 

Yeconoampa, Ipa, Paiaine 



Pitilaga 



f 
\ 

Moluche, Picunche, Puencke, \ 
Peye, Keye J 

Ranqualche {Ranquele), Querandi 

Calilehet, Culinan, Yacana, Ona 



Between Rs. Mamore and 
Itenez. 

Matto Grosso, Goyaz. 
Aj'inores Mts. and R. Doce. 

E. Brazil. 
E. Brazilian Forests. 
R,s. Araguaya, Xingu and 

Tocantins. 
Upper Xingu. 
Parana head-waters. 
R. Tocantins. 
R.. Xingu. 
R. Tapajos. 
Both sides R. Paraguay 

about Asuncion. 
Right bank R. Paraguay 

in Gran Chaco. 
Left bank Paraguay, Brazilo 

Paraguay frontier. 
Rs. Parana and Uruguay. 
Rs. Bermejo and Rio 

Grande, Gran Chaco. 

Gran Chaco. 

R. Bermejo, Gran Chaco. 

Gran Chaco. 

Rs. Pilcoraayo and Bermejo. 

Gran Chaco between the 

Chiiiguaiias and Guay- 

curus. 
Between Rs. Pilconiayo and 

Yaveviri, Grau Chaco. 
Chilian Andes, Coast and 

Islands. 

Pampas, S. to R. Negro. 
Patagonia, E. Fuegia. 
Central and W. Fuegia. 



General Culture — Contrasts between North and South 

A closer study of these multifarious populations 
reveals the strikins; fact that all the cultured or semi- 



To fcux pwie 4Z. 




E THIsr OX. O GI C AI. 

and 

PHIL.OLOGICAX, MAP 

or 

SOUTH AMERICA 

,Slxo"wiii^ tke General DxstmbTUicMr of tli.e 
INOICENOUS RACES 

■^'/^ Anl tke Positio^n. of the vaxions 

LinCUISTIC FAMILIES 



Names of Stocks - ARAWAK 

^ ^ Aii-<fi»xsioni"Maypure 

London , Eiward Stanford, 12, 13 &- 14r. Long Acxe. W. C . 



EARLY ETHICAL KELATIONS 43 

cultured peoples have from all known time been confined 
to the comparatively narrow western uplands between 
Colombia and Chile, while at the discovery the rest of 
the continent was, and in some measure still is, a seething 
mass of utter savagery. In most other regions the bulk 
of the inhabitants stand on or about the same plane of 
general progress, or at least the transitions are gradual 
from the lower to the higher states. Such is especially 
the case in North America, where under more favourable 
climatic relations the natives, taken as a whole, had 
advanced considerably beyond those of the south. Here 
the ruder tribes have nothing to show comparable to the 
mounds of various types scattered, in some places pro- 
fusely, over the Mississippi valley and the Appalachian 
lands. The Iroquois, Algonquins and others, supposed 
to be purely hunting or predatory tribes, had brought 
considerable tracts under cultivation in pre-Columbian 
times, and the passage is almost imperceptible from the 
mound-builders to the more settled Natchez, Seminole, 
and other groups in the south-east, and again to the still 
higher Pueblo communities in the extreme south-west 
(Arizona, New Mexico). 

Iso-Cultural Zones 

But in South America there are no transitions, or only 
such as in later times had been developed to a limited 
extent with the eastward expansion of the Incas' political 
sway down the slopes of the Cordillera, without anywhere 
quite reaching the lowlands. In fact it w^ould almost 
seem as if the policy of the Incas w^as rather to defend 
the approaches to their upland citadels from the attacks 
of the ferocious Chunchos, and other savage denizens of the 
forests watered by the Amazonian head-streams, than to 



44 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

extend the bounds of the empire in that direction. Yet 
several military expeditions were sent eastwards, and 
large tracts of the Montana conquered and permanently 
incorporated in the empire. At the same time all the 
slopes by which Cuzco and the other eastern districts 
might be reached from the Upper Ucayali (Yucay, 
Urubamba) were guarded by formidable works planned 
and executed with remarkable engineering skill. The 
Yucay valley was defended by the extensive fortifica- 
tions of Pisac, where every height was crowned with 
towers, every inequality in the rocks or other vantage 
ground filled in and faced with smooth slabs impossible 
to scale, every strategic point occupied by defensive works 
scarcely surpassed by ancient or modern military science. 

A line traced from a little east of Bogota along the 
windings of the Andean plateaux to about 30° S. and 
then deflected down the Maule valley to the coast, that 
is, along the southern limit of the Peruvian empire, will 
mark ofi" with sufficient precision the cultural and savage 
or barbaric zones to the right and left, and will at the 
same time show how immeasurably the latter exceeded 
the former in extent. The Incas' capital, Cuzco, within 
280 miles of the Pacific, stood close to this parting-line, 
so that, in a day's journey down the head-waters of the 
Ucayali, you passed abruptly from a land of orderly 
government, with well-developed political and social in- 
stitutions, to a region bounded eastwards only by the 
Atlantic, where not a single community could be met 
which had advanced beyond the fully organised tribal 
state. 

Of all these countless fractions of humanity the Aucas, 
just south of the Maule frontier, were amongst the most 
advanced. Yet they had neither properly constituted 
tribal groups nor hereditary chiefs, nor even patriarchal 



EAELY ETHICAL RELATIONS 45 

jurisdiction. No man recognised the authority of any- 
body ; the father scarcely ventured to exercise his 
natural influence within the narrow family circle ; there 
were no serfs or slaves, no social distinctions of any kind. 
If the nation, for such nevertheless it was, held together, 
and if the ethical standard was high, it was due partly 
to the love of freedom, by which every heart was inspired 
to resist the disciplined pressure of the craven Peruvian 
hosts from the north, and partly to the salutary belief 
that their conduct was observed by the vigilant eye of 
their forefathers dwelling in the stars set in the blue 
skies above their land. 



The Cultureless Zone 

But beyond the narrow confines of these " Iroquois of 
the South," as they have been somewhat inaptly called, 
much of the land was wrapped in darkness and deso- 
lation, homo Jioviini lupus — man a wolf to his fellow- 
man — while head-hunting, cannibalism in exceedingly 
repulsive forms, brutal treatment of the women and 
children, prevailed to some extent both amongst the 
Amazonian and the Brazilian aborigines. 

It is, however, right to say that, although for the 
most part living in a state of nature, many of the 
Amazonian natives were, and still are, amongst the 
noblest and most intelligent of all wild tribes. Hence 
the accounts given by some observers of extremely rude 
and savage customs must be taken as referring only to 
exceptionally debased groups, such as the Macus of the 
Eio Negro. These, we are told, have neither clothes 
nor houses, but only a few leaves stitched together as a 
shelter against the rain, yet have discovered a most 
deadly kind of poison for the arrowheads with which 



46 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

they attack other natives and kill everybody in the 
captured villages. The Aniajuacas of the Ucayali, near 
the old Peruvian frontier, have been over and again 
converted to (,'hristianity, each time relapsing and 
murdering the evangelists. Even the Antis, who roam 
the woods near Cuzco, are described as fierce, cruel 
and untamable savages, if not cannibals. Yet they 
were closely associated with the Quichuas, and gave their 
name both to the Andes and to Anti-swiju, the eastern 
division of the empire. The Cashibos, also, of the 
Ucayali, eat their aged parents, we are asked to believe, 
more from religious sentiment than from cruelty. But 
religion has nothing to do with their habit of imitat- 
ing the cry of game to decoy and, as is said, devour, 
hunters in the woods. Before their conversion it was 
the practice of the Cocomas of the Huallaga, but now 
removed to the Ucayali, to eat their dead relatives, and 
swallow the ground bones in fermented drinks, on the 
plea that it was better to be inside a warm friend than 
buried in the cold earth. 

Worse things are related of the Tupinambas ; the 
Tapuyas (" savages ") ; the Botocudos, who hack their 
refractory wives with sharp shells ; and of some other 
extinct or still surviving natives of the Brazilian sea- 
board ; of the Fuegians before the establishment of the 
English missions in their midst ; and of others in 
Ecuador, Colombia, and the Orinoco basin. 

Of monuments, in any intelligible sense of the term, 
there can be no question. The whole of this savage 
zone, over five million square miles in extent, and oc- 
cupied by man since Pleistocene times, has nothing to 
remind us of the presence of man except some rude and 
infantile carvings, described by some enthusiasts as '" rock 
inscriptions," met especially in the Guianas, Argentina, 



EARLY ETHICAL RELATIONS 47 

and Brazil, and the so-called piedras pintadas, "painted 
rocks," which have a much wider range, occurring 
also in Argentina and in Chile. All are interesting, 
because of the resemblances and analogies they every- 
where present both to each other, and also to similar 
tracings and sculptures in Arizona, New Mexico, and 
other parts of North America. When we consider that 
most of them fall far below the artistic skill of the 
African bushmen, and of the men of the first Stone Age 
in Europe, the suggestion may well be accepted that they 
were executed by some of the early immigrants from the 
north. The taste, or even the capacity to produce such 
carvings or paintings, crude as they are, may have after- 
wards been lost. At least they do not appear to be any- 
where repeated or imitated by the present populations, 
who would almost seem to have fallen below the low 
standard of culture possessed by those early immigrants 
into the southern continent. 

Many of these aborigines have not even reached the 
old Stone Age, for they cannot fashion a flint to any 
useful shape, and use no implements except shells, bones, 
thorns, and other materials supplied by nature. Others 
have never netted a hammock or launched a canoe, 
though dwelling on gently-flowing streams which seem 
designed expressly to foster the art of navigation. This 
picture of debasement is completed by one of the Chiquito 
tribes, who have the unique distinction of possessing 
absolutely no numeral system. The Australians and 
Papuans can all count at least up to tii:o ; but these 
Bolivians, under the shadow of the stupendous Tiahuanaco 
monuments on the shores of Titicaca, have never got 
beyond zero. The term etdma, said to mean one, really 
means "alone," "apart," so that their arithmetic is a 
blank. 



48 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

The Civilised Zone 

Thus while the wooded escarpments of the plateau 
continued to be the abode of rude wild tribes at the 
lowest rung of the social ladder, the plateau itself, 
treeless and bleak though it was, had long been the seat 
of a native culture capable of raising colossal monuments, 
elsewhere unrivalled for size and exquisite finish except 
in Egypt and Baalbec. These astonishing remains will 
have again to engage our attention, and here it must 
suffice to point out that they lie near the southern 
extremity of the cultural zone, beyond which all is 
savagery or barbarism. The much-discussed question of 
their origin can scarcely be treated apart from that of all 
the other pre-Columbian monuments, and other works of 
the more or less civilised communities, which stretch from 
this point in an unbroken iso-cultural line to the Colombian 
uplands. They are associated, going northwards, chiefly 
with the Bolivian "Aymaras" (properly Collas) and 
the allied Peruvian Quichuas, of whom the Incas were 
the dominant tribe, all these occupying the whole of the 
Andean plateau as far north as Quito (Ecuador) ; the 
nearly extinct Yuncas (Chimtis) of the present Peruvian 
province of Trujillo ; the people of Ancon on the same 
coast north of Lima, who, if not Quichuas, were at an 
early date brought under Quichua influences ; lastly, the 
Miiyscas {Chibchas) of the Cundinamarca plateau, Colombia, 
who are quite distinct in race, speech, and general culture 
from the Peruvians. 

Excluding those of Ancon, who cannot in the present 
connection be separated from the Quichuas, all these 
peoples had, long before the advent of the Conquistadores, 
made considerable progress in the arts and industries, as 
well as in various social institutions, as is sufficiently 



EARLY ETHICAL RELATIONS 49 

evident from the fact that they must be spoken of as 
nations in the strict sense of the term, and not merely 
as a bare aggregate of tribes, like the Mongolo-Tui'ki 
hordes of Central Asia fortuitously brought together by 
some conquering Khans in vast but evanescent empires. 
The empire of the Incas was marlced by great stability, 
at least outwardly, and by a complete fusion of the 
ethnical and social elements over wide areas, though not 
everywhere. The same was, no doubt, true also of the 
other political systems, such as those of the Aymaras and 
Yuncas, which disappeared, not by internal disintegration, 
but by the spread of the Incas' sway over the Cordillera 
and Pacific seaboard, while the Muyscas, though torn 
by civil strife, held together till overthrown by the 
Spaniards. 

Moreover, all these civilisations not only differed con- 
siderably from the Maya, the Aztec, and others of the 
northern continent, but also in many respects from each 
other. Characteristic of Chimu were the so-called huacas, 
huge sepulchral or other mounds, or truncated pyramids 
of a type somewhat analogous to those of Mexico, whereas 
the so-called mound of Ak-kapana at Tiahuanaco, which 
had been compared with those of Yucatan, is now shown 
to be a natural hill formerly crowned with buildings that 
have since disappeared. So also the Peruvian temples 
and other structures, as well as the great highways, 
terraced slopes, irrigation and other works carried out 
by the Incas, are of a different order from those of Central 
America. 

It is further to be noted that the Aztecs, and especially 
the Mayas, had made considerable progress in the art of 
pictorial writing. Many of their symbols are now believed 
even to possess phonetic value, though still falling far 
short of a true alphabetic system. But of all tliis 

VOL. I E 



50 COMPENDIUM OF GEOLiliAI'HY AND TltAVEL 

no certain trace ^ has been i'ound in tlie South, where 
even the Quichuas had no means of recording events, 
whether of an astronomical or an historical order, except 
by the so-called quippos or strings, a rude system of 
mnemonics still in use in some of the rural districts, the 
x^alues of which are determined by the length, colour, 
Jvuots, loops, and general arrangement of the strings. 

Everywhere navigation was in a rudimentary state, 
the most advanced peoples being unacquainted with keeled 
vessels, or indeed with any craft beyond canoes and a 
kind of float or raft, on which a small sail might be 
hoisted in the calm waters of the Pacific coastlands, but 
useless for ordinary seafaring purposes. On the other 
hand, the land- connections were such as to exclude the 
suggestion of any large movements of invading hordes ; 
nor were there any traditions or records of such move- 
ments among the people on either side of the isthmus of 
Panama, which had been reached only by one or two 
straggling Aztec groups from Nicaragua. This is one of 
the reasons why it is so ditticult to accept the tradition 
that the founder of the Lambayeque dynasty in the Chimu 
territory came with his followers from the ocean on rafts. 
If to all these considerations be added the fact that the 
Aztec, Muysca, and Quichua-Aymara idioms were all stock 
languages with nothing in common except their general 
polysynthetic character, the inference seems irresistible 
that the cultured peoples north and south of the Panama 

1 Mention is made by Molina (1570-84) and others of pictures in the 
Inca country recording events, though none have been preserved. Some 
autliorities think the carvings discovered in the Santa Maria Valley, 
province Cataraarca, Argentina, constituted a writing .system, even with 
[ihonetic characters, of Peruvian origin, but long extinct in the land of 
its birth. Yet even so, no support would thereby be lent to Maya -Aztec 
theories, for nobody pretends that such " inscri]itions" have anything 
in coiinnon with the Central American systems. 



EAKLV ETHICAL RELATIONS 51 

region had for long ages remained practically isolated 
from each other. At least no regular communications 
had been established, no intercourse maintained beyond 
that of casual travellers or other visitors, which might 
suffice perhaps to account for such analogies as may be 
detected, for instance, between the Aztec or Peruvian 
pictorial art, as displayed in the decoration of the re- 
spective fictile vases, textiles or metal work. 

It follows that the main features of all these cultural 
centres must have been independent local developments, 
and this is the conclusion which the latest and most 
careful observers have come to respecting the Tiahuanaco 
monuments, the most wonderful and original of all.^ 
They were the work of the Aymara people, in whose 
territory they were raised in times prior to the conquest 
of the Titicaca basin by the Incas, who were consequently 
not the builders of these vast megalithic structures. The 
relations of the Incas to the conquered Aymaras will be 
dealt with further on. 

1 Stiibel and Ulile, Die Ituinenstdtte von Tiahuanaco, etc., Breslaii, 
1893, a sumptuous work, wliicli deals exhaustively with the whole subject. 



CHAPTEE III 

LATER ETHNICAL AND HISTORIC RELATIONS 

The Discovery — Exploration of the Seaboard — Inland Expeditions — 
Orellana's A'^oyage down the Amazon — Relations of the Whites to 
the Aborigines — Miscegenation — Settlement of Brazil — The Negro 
Element — Mestizo Terminology — S|)anish and Portuguese Colonial 
Administration — The Revolt — The Brazilian Empire and Republic 
— The Spanish South-American States. 

The Discovery — Exploration of the Seaboard 

Somewhere about the year 1380 Chaucer wrote: — 

" Him nedeth not his colour for to dien 
With Brazil, ne with grain of Portingal." 

Some now forgotten mystification has been caused by 
this apparently prophetic mention of the chief region of 
the southern continent, and in association too with the 
name of Portugal, its future master, quite 120 years 
before South America was sighted, and 170 years 
before any part of it was known by the name of Brazil. 
But the explanation is simple. The mention of Portugal 
in this connection is merely a curious coincidence, while 
the " Brazil " referred to by the poet is not a country 
but a dyewood, which was so named from its red flame 
colour,^ and was well known to the Portuguese and other 

^ Cf. Frencli braise; Eng. brazier; Port, braza ; Ital. brasile, etc., all 
from a Teutonic root preserved in the Anglo-Saxon ircesian. 



LATER ETHNICAL AND HISTORICAL RELATIONS 53 

seafaring nations in the fourteenth century. Soon after 
the discovery a similar dye wood was found in abund- 
ance on the present Brazilian coastlands, which were 
thus named from it, and not the dyewood from the 
country. 

No part of the southern mainland was reached till 
the year 1498, when Columbus visited the Orinoco delta 




THE FIRST HOUSE ERECTED ON THE SPANI.SH MAIN, STILL EXISTING 
AT CARTAGENA. 

and circumnavigated the island of Trinidad, which was 
so named by him in honour of the Trinity. He was 
followed in 1499 by Peralonso Nifio and Cristobal 
Guerra, who coasted the Guiana sealjoard for some dis- 
tance \,-estwards, and by Hojeda with his famous pilot 
Amerigo Vespucci, who completed the first rough survey 
of the low-lying Venezuelan coastlands for 600 miles to 
the Goajira Peninsula beyond the Maracaibo inlet. The 



54 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

remainder of the northern seaboard was traced in 1500-1 
1)}' Bastidas de Sevilla all the way to the Gulf of Darien 
or Uraba, while Vicente Pinzon and Diego de Lepe 
passing soutli wards reached the Amazon estuary, pene- 
trating round the island of Marajo into what they 
supposed was a great " fresh-water sea." Pushing still to 
the south Pinzon, rounding Cape S. Eoque, easternmost 
headland of the continent, penetrated into the southern 
waters to Bahia, while Vespucci advanced in 1503 as far 
as the little inlet of Cananea, memorable as the starting- 
point of the first expedition to the interior, from which 
not a soul returned alive. The exploration of the eastern 
seaboard was completed as far as the Plate estuary in 
1509 by Pinzon and Diaz de Solis. Eeturning in 1515, 
Solis made a more thorough survey of this great inlet, 
which was known as the Eio de Solis till 1528, when 
Sebastian Cabot, at that time in the Spanish service, 
findins that the Parana branch led towards the Peruvian 
silver mines, renamed it the Eio de la Plata, i.e. the 
" Silver Eiver." 

By the line drawn by Pope Alexander VI. in 1493, 
when he " sliced the world in two like an apple," assign- 
incr the western half to Spain and the eastern to Portugal, 
the latter power was very nearly excluded altogether from 
the southern continent. The line about coincided with 
the present meridian of 40° west of Greenwich, which 
intersects South America near its easternmost extremity 
not far from the S. Eoque headland. But the very next 
year the parting line w^as, by the Treaty of Tordesillas, 
shifted considerably to the west, so that when this region 
was actually discovered the boundary was found by the 
Spaniards to run from a little west of the Amazon estuary 
southwards, and by the Portuguese to strike the mainland 
still farther w^est (60' or 61° W. Gr.), so as to leave the 



LAIEK ETHNICAL AND HISTOKICAL EELATIONS 55 

wliole of Guiana to the Orinoco delta on their side. 
The question never was and never could be settled, 
the proposed meridian having to be drawn 370 leagues 
west, not of any fixed point, but of an indefinable point 
in the Cape A^erdes and Azores, which groups occupy wide 
but far from identical areas in the Atlantic. 

But in any case a considerable slice of the southern 
mainland, however the treaty might be interpreted, 
necessarily fell to the share of the Portuguese. Hence 
it is all the more surprising that this rich " windfall " 
remained unknown to them, and unvisited by their 
navigators, till Pedro Alvarez Cabral, bound for the Cape 
and the East, was driven by a storm westwards to the 
Brazilian seaboard in the year 1500. Supposing the 
point where he struck land to be an island, he named it 
the Ilha da Santa Gruz^" Holy Eood Island," and gave 
the title of Porto Seguro to the haven where he had 
found refuge from the storm, and where he hoisted the 
Portuguese flag in tlie name of King Emmanuel. The 
" Harbour of Safety " still remains, while the imaginary 
island with its very name became merged in the vast region 
which, for the reason above stated, began about the middle 
of the sixteenth century to be known as the land of 
brazil-wood, or simply Brazil. 

On the Pacific side the survey of the seaboard was 
naturally delayed till it became known that here also 
there was a seaboard, in others words, that America was 
an island, and not a part of the Asiatic mainland, more 
particularly of India, as persistently held Ity Columbus to 
the last. The delusion was dispelled by two memorable 
events — the actual discovery of the Pacific Ocean, first 
sighted by Vasco Nunez de Balboa in 1513, and tlu^ 
opening of the inter-oceanic route by the voyage of 
Magellan through the strait named from him in the 



56 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

year 1520. Owing to the east- west trend of the isthmus 
of Panama, Nunez, crossing from the Caribbean Sea to the 
San Miguel inlet of the Gulf of Panama, looked out south - 
vjards on the boundless expanse, which he, therefore, 
called the " South Sea." Magellan, on the other hand, 
gave the name of " Pacific " to what proved to be the 
same oceanic basin, because he found himself in tranquil 
waters after weathering the stormy Fuegian channel. 
Since that time both expressions have been in constant 
use, and although Magellan's " Pacific Ocean " prevails 
amongst the nations of Eomance and English speech, 
Xunez' " South Sea " holds its ground in Teutonic lands. 
Even in English the expressions " South Cea Islands " and 
" South Sea Islanders " are more in favour when speaking of 
the countless Pacific insular groups and their inhabitants. 
A beginning was made with the maritime explora- 
tion of the Pacific side of the southern continent in 1517, 
when Espinosa launched the first sailing vessel in 
Panama Bay, although his first trip was made, not south- 
wards to Colombia or Peru, but round to the Nicoya inlet 
in Costa Pica. All the early voyages of discovery and 
conquest started from the Isthmian region, and although 
one of the ships detached by stress of weather from 
Loaysa's squadron in 1526 actually sailed from Euegia to 
Tehuantepec (Mexico), it stood so far out to sea that the 
South American coast was not even sighted at any single 
point. Four years before this event, Andagoya had crept 
down the rugged Colombian seaboard to the mouth of a 
little river " Biru," the very position or identity of 
which appears to have never been determined. Yet 
its name, transformed by the Spaniards to Pent, has 
become associated with imperishable memories, and, 
by a not uncommon geographical misconception, has 
found a permanent " local habitation " as the designation 



LATER ETHNICAL AND HISTOKICAL IJELATIONS 57 

of one of the great political divisions of the southern 
continent. The reports of nourishing empires and 
boundless wealth, though not yet of El Dorado (" The 
Man of Gold ") himself, brought back by Andagoya, 
gave the first impulse to Pizarro's scheme of conquest, 
which in fact began in 1524 with the formation of that 
renowned syndicate the " Biru Company," which, like the 
Eoman triumvirates, consisted of three partners — Pizarro, 
Almagro, and Hernando de Luque. 

Henceforth exploration and conquest go hand-in-hand 
both in Colombia and Peru, so that the work of coast 
survey need not here be followed in separate detail. It 
is curious to note in this connection that, for a long time, 
all geographical research was arrested at the Eio Maule, 
southern limit of the Incas' territory, and of the first 
military expeditions sent out in all directions by the 
Conquistadores. Even the coast-line was left undeter- 
mined till it was followed by Alonzo de Camargo from 
south to north (Fuegia to Callao) in 1540, and in the 
opposite direction by Sarmiento in 1579. The later 
and more accurate surveys of the southern fjords and 
archipelagoes were mostly carried out by Cook, Fitzroy, 
and other officers of the British Admiralty, although the 
terminal insular headland of Cape Horn (properly Hoorn) 
was first rounded in 1616 by the Dutch navigator, the 
name of. whose native town it bears. With him was 
associated his fellow-countryman Jacob Lemaire, whose 
name is also perpetuated in Lemaire Strait between 
Fuegia proper and Staten Island. 

Inland Expeditions — Early Voyages on the Amazons 

Of the early inland expeditions, the most memorable 
is that of Gonzalo Pizarro, younger brother of the con- 



58 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

queror of Peru, who left Quito to discover the land of 
cinnamon on Christmas day 15o9. His party descended 
into the eastern forests, followed down the river Coca to 
its junction with the Napo, and built a small vessel in 
which to discover " the great river." Gonzalo sent his 
lieutenant, Francisco Orellana, to reconnoitre, who basely 
deserted his chief. Thereupon Gonzalo and his followers, 
after suffering terrible hardships, returned to Quito, while 
Orellana descended the great river and, reaching its 
mouth, sailed out of it in August 1541, finally arriving 
at the Spanish settlement of Culiagua. In one of the 
encounters on the river between the Spaniards and the 
natives, Orellana reported that he saw ten or twelve 
women fighting in front of the Indians. The Spaniards 
called them Amazons, and Father Carbajal, the historian 
of the voyage, described the female warriors. His work 
is lost, but the historian Herrera quoted from it, and the 
river received the name of Amazons. 

In 1560 a second expedition imder Pedro de Ursua 
descended the river Amazons, but his followers mutinied 
and murdered him, chose a desperate ruffian named Lope 
de Aguirre as their leader, and completed the voyage. 
It is a horrible story of rapine and cruelty, the mutineers 
being finally defeated at I>urburata in Venezuela by the 
royal troops. 

In 1637 two monks descended the Amazons to its 
mouth, and their arrival at Para induced the governor to 
despatch a Portuguese expedition up the river, under the 
command of Pedro de Texeira. The expedition was 
accompanied by the Jesuit Cristoval de Acuiia, and 
Texeira reached Quito in 1638. The Jesuit Father 
observed everything on the way, noted down the names 
of Indian tribes, their manners and customs, the names 
of the rivers flowinsj into the Amazons, and the natural 



LATER ETHNICAL AND HISTORICAL RELATIONS 59 

productions of the country. Acuiia's valuable work on 
the great river and the tribes on its banks was published 
at Madrid in 1641. The first descents of the river 
Amazons were thus made by Orellana in 1541, and 
Aguirre in 1561, and the first ascent by Texeira in 
1638, Acuiia being the first to publish a full de- 
scription of the river and of the tribes inhabiting 
its banks. 



Relations of the Whites to the Aborigines 

Very great contrasts are everywhere conspicuous in 
the attitude of the white intruders towards the aborigines 
in the northern and southern continents. The differences, 
which must have a biding influence on the destinies of 
mankind in the western hemisphere, if not in the whole 
world, are not exclusively due to the various nationalities 
of the European settlers, as is so generally assumed by 
superficial or biassed observers. From tlie present con- 
sideration the Guianas, with their feeble white (British, 
Dutch, and French) population, may be excluded, as of no 
account, while Central America, including Mexico, must 
from this ethnical standpoint be transferred from the 
northern to the southern continent. We shall then 
have, for purposes of comparison, two sharply delimited 
ethnological and linguistic areas, to which the convenient 
if not quite accurate expressions " Anglo-Saxon " and 
" Latin America " have Ijeen applied. Here the term 
" Anglo-Saxon " is strained to cover, not only all the 
settlers from the British Isles, but also all other European 
immigrants (mainly of Teutonic stock), whose mother- 
tongue either is or must eventually be English. On the 
other hand, by " Latin America " is to be understood the 
whole region, as above defined, in which languages of 



60 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Latin origin — almost exclusively Spanish and Portuguese 
—are dominant. 

In this broad statement alone expression is already 
given to fundamental differences. Thus in the north we 
have but one language, English, which is not merely 
" dominant," but practically the mother-tongue of the 
whole population, the only important exception being the 
French spoken by considerably over one million Franco- 
Canadians. But the south is divided between two lin- 
guistic domains, while the language of each is scarcely 
anywhere the universal speech of all the inhabitants, but 
only of the dominant political section. In support of 
this statement it may suffice to mention the still wide 
range of Aztec and Maya-Quiche in Central America, of 
Quichua-Aymara in Peru and Bolivia, of Auca in South 
Chile, and of Tupi-Guarani in Brazil, Paraguay and 
Argentina, besides the continual spread of English on the 
seaboard, and of English, Italian, German and even 
Basque in the most progressive regions of Argentina, 
Uruguay and Brazil (Sao Paulo, Rio Grande do Sul). 

Miscegenation 

Behind these differences lies a deeper, to which in 
fact they are due. If in the North English is or is 
becoming the mother-tongue of all, it is because there 
has been no fusion, or none to any serious extent, between 
the natives and the whites, but an absolute displacement 
of the former by the latter. At present there are 
practically no free tribes in the United States outside of 
Alaska, and but a few thousands in the Dominion, all 
the rest having been swept into reservations and agencies, 
where they have no power of expansion, that is, no 
future. 



LATEli ETHNICAL AND HISTORICAL RELATIONS 61 

But in Latin America the relations are entirely 
different. Unlike the English " Pilgrim Fathers " and 
Virginian planters, the first Spaniards and Portuguese 
came admittedly as adventurers, soldiers of fortune, and 
treasure-seekers, unaccompanied by their womenkind and 
unencumbered by children. Some few in commanding 
positions returned for their families, and in the next 
century women accompanied the emigrants in consider- 
able numbers. Many of the first conquerors, however, 
found it wiser for obvious reasons to settle down, and 
found new families by alliance with the natives. Nor 
could these natives be anywhere bodily displaced in the 
cultural zones, which even after the wholesale massacres, 
deportations, famines and other attendant horrors, remained 
still far too thickly peopled to allow of such summary 
processes as were possible amongst the scattered hunting 
tribes of the northern prairies. 

In South Argentina and Uruguay, the conditions were 
not unlike those of the north, as seen by the many points 
of resemblance between the Uruguayan Charruas and the 
Pampas Indians on the one hand, and the Dakota and 
Algonquian nomads on the other. The result also has 
been the same — a clean sweep of Charruas and Pampas, 
for none of whom was there even time to prepare reserva- 
tions, amid the storm and stress of modern social and 
industrial developments. 



Settlement of Brazil 

But the settlement of South Brazil, also a cultureless 
region, took place in earlier and less feverish times, con- 
sequently with quite different and, in some respects, 
surprising results, by which the whole current of history 
may be said to have been permanently influenced in 



62 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

favour of the Portuguese rivals of the hitherto unchallenged 
Spanish supremacy. 

Commissioned by King John III. to open up these 
southern districts, Martini Aftbnso de Souza founded in 
1532 the station of Sao Vicente on the little coaBt-stream 
to which he gave the same name, and, at the same time 
" made an alliance with the Indians of the Carijo tribes 
called Goyana and Piratiningana." Then we are told 
that, some thirty years later, these colonists and their 
half-caste descendants already formed a numerous and 
energetic community, which sent out other settlers, 
founded the cities of Santo -Andre and Sao-Paulo, and 
" gradually spread over the continent." The population, 
it is expressly stated, continued to increase " through the 
alliance of the Europeans with the Indians ; while 
their posterity, more active and enterprising than 
their maternal ancestors, were called Mamelucos and 
Curibocas." ^ 

Later they became known by other names, Vicentistas, 
from the captaincy of Sao Vicente, and especially Pav.listas, 
from the province of Sao Paulo, and these Paulistas soon 
spread the fame and terror of their name over half the 
continent. We shall meet them again, attacking aborigines, 
Spaniards, and the Jesuit missions with indiscriminate 
fury, opening up the mining districts, plunging fearlessly 
into the Brazilian backwoods, clearing the land for fresh 
settlements, pushing steadily forward, and extending the 
frontiers of the Portuguese domain right up to the slopes 
of the Cordillera. To the astonishing energy, daring, and 
enterprising spirit of these hardy pioneers is mainly due 
the fact that South America is at present partitioned, in 
nearly equal proportions, between the two dominant Latin 
peoples of Spanish and Portuguese speech. 
1 M. lie Saint Adolphe, vol. ii. p. 600. 



LATEK ETHNICAL AND HISTORICAL KELATIONS 63 

The Negro Element 

As in other parts of Latin America, great numbers of 
the aborigines were captured by the Paulistas for the 
mines and plantations, but everywhere witli much the 
same results. After thousands and tens of thousands had 
perished, without any adequate returns, they had to be 
replaced by Negro labour, and thus a fresh ethnical 
element was introduced into South as into North America. 
The Africans were imported into Venezuela, the Guianas, 
and especially the north-eastern provinces of Brazil 
and the Peruvian coastlands, mainly from Angola, Upper 
Guinea, and the other Portuguese possessions on the 
opposite side of the Atlantic. 

The new relations thus created again presented the 
most marked contrasts in the Anglo -Saxon and Latin 
worlds. From the first the contact between the Virginia 
planters and the imported slaves was a one-sided affair, 
and since the emancipation has virtually ceased altogether. 
But in the south, and especially in Brazil, the blacks were 
received almost as equals by their half-caste employers, 
and in any case the only bar to their fusion in the 
general population was their social status. Pace and 
colour never counted for much, so that even before the 
enfranchisement a straui of black blood was everywhere 
perceptible amongst the settled comnninities of Bahia, 
Ceara, Para, and surrounding provinces. 

Thus it happens that while the whites have presei'ved 
their racial purity in the Southern United States, they 
have, at the same time, created a " Negro Question," to 
be dealt with by future philanthropists and statesmen. 
But there is no negro question in Latin America, where 
all the ethnical elements have from the first tended to 
be merged in a fresh division of mankind, which may 



64 COMPENDIUM OF GKOGRArilY AND TRAVEL 

eventually acquire a uniform character, but must long 
continue to betray its diverse origins in the heterogeneous 
nature of its physical and mental qualities. 

Mestizo Terminology 

Such strides has miscegenation made along the 
Brazilian seaboard as far south as Bahia, that full-blood 
families, whether white, black, or native, are here rather 
the exception than the rule, at least in all the settled 
communities. Amongst the urban populations, the ob- 
server notices with amazement an endlessly diversified 
series of transitional types, for which the rich local 
nomenclature totally fails to find adequate expression. 
The confusion and perplexity are greatly increased by 
the different meanings attached in different parts of Latin 
America to some of the terms of this bewildering nomen- 
clature, as shown by the subjoined list of the more 
important names in current use : — 

Cabureto: Cross between Indian and Negress (Brazil). 

Cafuso: Issue of Negro and Indian women (Brazil). 

Ouriboco : At first a white and Indian cross, now applied to various 

white, Inilian, and Negro crosses (Brazil). 
Casco : Direct issue of Mulattos on both sides (South America). 
CMno : Negro and Indian cross (Spanish America). 
Cholo : Issue of Zambos (South America). 
Creole: Generally a full -blood white in Spanish America and West 

Indies; full-blood black (Brazil) ; the issue of whites and Mestizos 

(Peru). 
Maiaaluco : Any cross, but especially white and Indian (Brazil). 
Mestizo: Any half-breed, white and Negro, but especially white and 

Indian (Spanish America). 
ihiJatto : Any white and black cross, properly in the first generation, 

then all descendants of ilulattos. 
Negro : Full-blood black, whether of African or American birth. 
Octoroon: Issue of a Quadroon and white ; i.e. a white with a strain of 

one-sixteenth black blood. 
Pardo : Same as Mulatto (Brazil) ; any half-breed (Argentina). 



LATER ETHNICAL AND HLSTOKICAL RELATIONS 



65 



Quadroo7i ^ 

^ . - \\ lute witli oue-fourth black blood. 

Quarteroon j 

Quinieroon : White with one-eighth black blood. 

Tapanhuna : Negro and Indian cross (Brazil, local). 

Tentc en el Ayrc : Half-breed with predominant white element (Spanish 

America). 

Xibaro : Same as Tatianlmna. 




MESTIZOS OF QUINDIO. 



Zambo: Any half-breed, but mostly Negro and Indian; in Peru and 
West Indies Negro and Mulatto ; in St. Vincent the half-caste 
Caribs. 

Zambo Prcto : Issue of Negro and Zamba women (Spanish America). 

The amalgam of all these elements must be regarded 
in the nature of a compromise in process of completion, 
but a compromise in which there would seem to have 
been a lowering of the higher without a corresponding 

VOL. L F 



66 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

raising of the lower elements, except in a few instances, 
notably the Paulistas, the Paraguayans, and perhaps some 
of the Gauchos, developed under exceptionally ftivourable 
circumstances. 



Spanish and Portuguese Colonial Administration 

The Spanish colonial system was framed in the 
interests of the inhabitants quite as much as in those 
of the metropolis. But its admitted failure was owing 
to the local authorities, who generally disobeyed the 
orders from the central government, with the twofold 
object of gaining credit by sending home treasure, and 
of consulting their own interests. In fact, the colonial 
policy of all European nations was much the same before 
the nineteenth century, and consisted of oppressive 
monopolies and protective measures of all kinds, which 
had the threefold aim of inflating the State revenues, 
preventing the development of local industries that might 
compete with those of the home country, and excluding 
aliens from any share in the trade of the colonies. This 
policy was carried to extreme lengths by Spain, and 
when we read that all intercourse with the outer world 
was visited with severe penalties, we feel how justified 
is this summary description. 

Nor did Portugal lag far behind, and so early as 
1503 the Brazil wood, from which, as above seen, the 
country took its name, was declared a Eoyal monopoly ; 
in the next century various corporations leased from the 
Crown the exclusive right of trading with Brazil, while 
an extraordinary decree was issued in l701 forbidding 
all traffic between the northern and southern provinces. 
In 1715 the further development of the local rum 
•iistilleries was arrested in the interest of the importers 



LATER ETHNICAL AND HISTOlilCAL RELATIONS 67 

of brandies from Portugal, and these prohibitive measures 
culminated in 1785 with the suppression of all the 
weaving industries, those only excepted which provided 
the coarse cottons worn by the slaves. 

Equally or even more disastrous was the ecclesiastical 
regime, which, by the introduction of the Inquisition and 
alliance with the civil power, maintained the outward 
supremacy of the Eoman Church at the cost of true 
religion, manly feeling, and intellectual progress. Even 
material loss was caused by the expulsion or exclusion 
of the enterprising Jews and " heretics," a loss poorly 
compensated by the spread of a veneer of Christianity 
amongst the aborigines gathered round the Jesuit missions 
of the interior. 

One result of the rigid patriarchal system introduced 
at these missions was to make the natives somewhat 
helpless in the struggle for existence after the suppression 
of the Jesuits by Pope Clement XIV. in 1773. When 
the missions were dispersed many of the congregations 
were destroyed by the more vigorous uncivilised tribes, 
and others relapsed into the wild state, while the 
survivors have merged in the general half-caste popula- 
tions, whose religion consists of a verbal profession of 
misunderstood dogmatic teachings, blended with gross 
superstitions and coarse outward observances, conducted 
by a priesthood which was not distinguished by a high 
moral tone. 

The Revolt 

After the successful proclamation of the rights of man 
by the British North American colonists, revolution was 
in the air. The feeling of restlessness was intensified 
by the great upheaval in France, as well as by the 



68 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

writings of Kousseau and the French encyclopedists. 
But the opportunity did not come till the opening of 
the nineteenth century, when legitimacy was overthrown 
by Napoleon in the Iberian Peninsula. 



The Brazilian Empire and Republic 

Events now took a twofold course in the southern 
continent, where the divided Hispano-Lusitanian rule 
made itself at once felt. The House of Bragan^a had 
always taken a special interest in its trans-Atlantic 
possessions, not only conferring the title of " Principality " 
on Brazil, but that of " Prince of Brazil " on the heir- 
presumptive to the Crown itself. Possibly, despite the 
shameful administrative abuses, a latent sentiment of 
loyalty may have thus been fostered, as it certainly had 
been in the principality of Wales by the like action of 
our Edward I. But in any case when the Prince 
Eegent, after the occupation of Portugal by the French, 
took refuge in Brazil (1808), he was well received by 
all classes, and the devotion of the people to this dynasty 
was for a time strengthened by the wise policy which 
made the Brazilian seaports free to all nations, and in 1815 
changed the title of Principality to that of " Kingdom." 

But when the founder of this first hereditary monarchy 
in the New World returned to Lisbon in 1821, his 
eldest son Dom Pedro, who had been appointed Prince 
Eegent, found himself compelled by the current of events 
to sever the connection with Portugal, and soon after 
constituted Brazil an independent empire, himself assum- 
ing the Imperial Purple in Eio de Janeiro on 12 th 
October 1822. Thus was brought about the independency 
of the " Greater Portugal " by the peaceful process of 
segmentation, just as in our days the empire itself was 



LATER ETHNICAL AND HISTORICAL RELATIONS 69 

transformed to a Federal Eepublic, under the title of 
The United States of Brazil, also by a bloodless revolution 
(Xovember 1889). 



The Spanish South American States 

Apart from some mutterings and menaces in the 
half-Spanish district of Eio Grande do Sul, it is noteworthy 
that these happy solutions of high political problems 
have at all times been followed by the maintenance of 
peace and orderly government throughout the vast con- 
tines of Empire and Eepublic. Herein the contrast is 
complete between the Portuguese and the Spanish 
domains. In the latter the wars of independence, fought 
out bravely on both sides, have been followed almost 
everywhere by far more disastrous fratricidal wars, by 
incessant strife within each separate state, with an 
expenditure of blood and treasure out of all proportion 
to the interests involved. 

The dreams of some of the revolutionary leaders to 
replace the old Spanish vice-royalties by a united Spanish 
South America, whether on the principle of federation 
or otherwise, were quickly dispelled, and indeed shown to 
be impracticable on many grounds that need not here be 
discussed. The very lie of the land, mostly confined to 
the Andean plateaux, and at that time almost destitute 
of inter-communications, of itself excluded the idea of 
any such political unity. Hence after the removal of the 
fictitious bond of unity supplied by the suzerainty of 
Spain, the whole region was, so to say, dissolved into its 
primeval elements, and reconstituted as a sort of South 
American "Heptarchy," in which the chief bonds of 
union were and are the Spanish language, everywhere 
the common speech of the ruling classes, and the 



70 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TKAVEL 

republican form of government, generally modelled on 
that of North America. 

Despite the political convulsions, which happily seem 
to show symptoms of exhaustion, a considerable measure 
of material progress has almost everywhere been made, 
as seen in the marked increase of population, in the 
spread of general comfort, the improvement of the com- 
munications, the growth of trade, and the development of 
the immense natural resources of the land. In some 
places, notably South Brazil, Uruguay, and the central 
states of Argentina, the progress in all these and other 
respects has been prodigious. 

All these regions, representing about 2,000,000 
square miles, lie fairly within the temperate zone, and 
are in every way the most suitable for European settle- 
ment. Hence for many years a stream of emigration has 
set steadily in this direction from the Spanish and French 
Basque Provinces, from Italy, Germany, the British Isles, 
and even Eussia, this contingency being chiefly Jews 
driven into exile by the persecuting spirit still rampant in 
that empire. Hitherto the several communities have kept 
much apart, and as all are free to educate their children 
in their own way, a long time must elapse before they 
are merged in a homogeneous community of one speech, 
inspired by a common national sentiment. From this 
community are definitely excluded both the aboriginal 
and the black elements. Consequently it must ultimately 
constitute a compact mass of pure European stock, 
reckoned by many millions, which cannot fail to exercise 
a controlling, if not a dominant, influence over the 
destinies of the southern continent. 

Subjoined is a table of all the South American States, 
with their respective areas, populations, capitals, and 
other details. 



LATER ETHNICAL AND HISTORICAL RELATIONS 



Republic. 


Area in 
sq. 111. 


Population. 


Revenue. 


Debt. 


Capital. 


Venezuela 


594,000 


2,323,000 


£2,060,000 


£7,940,000 


Caracas. 






(1891) 


(1896) 


(1897) 




Colombia 


505,000 


4,000,000 


£2,000,000 


£4,744,000 


Bogota. 






(est. 1895) 


(1897) 


(1896) 




Ecuador . 


120,000 


1,272,000 


£886,000 
(1896) 


£1,500,000 

(1896) 


Quito. 


Peru 


461,000 


2,622,000 


£1,072,000 


£32,530,000 1 


Lima. 






(1876) 


(1896) 


(1876) 




Bolivia . 


567,000 


2,020,000 


£300,000 


£1,152,000 


Sucre. 






(1893) 


(1897) 


(1896) 




Chile . 


204,000 


2,712,000 


£3,600,000 
(1898) 


£20,000,000 

(1897) 


Santiago. 


Argentina 


1,319,000 


3,955,000 


£15,000,000 


£80,000,000 


Buenos Ayres. 






(1895) 


(1899) 


(1899) 




Uruguay . 


72,000 


819,000 


£3,070,000 


£23,700,000 


Montevideo. 






(est. 1896) 


(1895) 


(1896) 




Paraguay 


98,000 


600,000 


£1,000,000 


£995,000 


Asuncion. 






(est. 1897) 


(1897) 


(1897) 




Brazil 


3,210,000 


16,330,000 


£31,316,000 


£198,000,000 


Rio de Janeiro. 






(1890) 


(1897) 


(1896) 





^ This debt was cancelled by the bond-holders in 1889, in exchange for 
concessions to a body called the "Peruvian Corporation." 



CHAPTEE IV 

VENEZUELA 

Extent — Boundaries — Disputed Frontiers — Physical Features — General 
Relief — Northern Uplands — Sierra de Merida — Coast Range — 
Cordillera de la Silla — The Southern Uplands : Sierras Parima and 
Pacaraima — Earthquakes — Igneous Phenomena — The Venezuelan 
Llanos — Scenery of the Llanos — Hydrography — Lake Maracaibo — 
Lake of Valencia — The Orinoco Basin — The Delta — Orinoco Scenery 
— Gulf of Paria — Climate — Flora — Fauna — Inhabitants— The 
Aborigines — Europeans and Mestizos — Prospects of Immigrants — 
Historic Retrospect — Topography — Chief Towns — Government — 
Social Condition. 

Extent — Boundaries — Disputed Frontiers 

After the expulsion of the Spaniards the newly-formed 
states set about determining their respective frontiers 
on the uti possidetis principle of the Spanish government 
in 1810. But a little consideration will show that 
difficulties were inevitable, and were not solely due to the 
greed or ambition of the rival republics. In fact they were 
largely caused by the character of the territories which had 
to be delimited. They comprised two distinct geographical 
groups — the strictly lowland states of Argentina, Para- 
guay, and Uruguay, and the highland states of Venezuela, 
New Grenada (Colombia), Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and 
Chile. But between the two groups there were no 
well-marked natural frontiers, so tliat collisions and com- 
plications became inevitable, when one group sought to 
broaden their boundaries down the slopes to the plains, 
while the other, or at least Argentina, endeavoured to 
creep as far up the escarpments of the plateaux as possible. 



VENEZUELA 7 3 

Throughout the nineteenth century Venezuela has 
had frontier difficulties with all her neighbours — 
Colombia on the west, Brazil on the south, and England, 
as heir to the western section of Dutch Guiana, on the 
east. The last, by far the most serious, threatened for a 
moment to cause a rupture between the two powers, 
but was referred in 1896 to the Government of the 
United States, at whose suggestion four arbitrators (two 
for Great Britain and two for Venezuela), with a president, 
were appointed to inquire into the whole question at issue, 
the decision of the majority to be final. The point at 
issue concerned a small but important strip of coastland 
just east of the Orinoco delta, the surrender of which by 
England would exclude British Guiana from all access by 
land to the Lower Orinoco basin. From a paper on the 
subject, contributed by Sir CI. Markham to the Geographi- 
cal Journal for March 1896, it appears that England's 
right to this district, watered by the Barama and Barima 
coast-streams, is indefeasible on the solid grounds of history, 
exploration, and effective occupation. Venezuela claimed 
solely through Spain,^ which, as shown by the old maps 
and other data, never at any time occupied the coastlands 
east of the delta, these being described as " Caribana," 
that is, the independent territory of the Caribs. But 
England claimed partly through the Dutch, who were in 
alliance with these very Caribs ; partly through geographi- 
cal research, especially that of Sir E. H. Schomburgk 
(1835-45), whose frontier line includes the strip in 

1 At least the absurd claim based on Pope Alexander's Bull was not 
seriously entertained by the court. The original line of 1493, which 
alone had Papal sanction, was superseded by that of 1494, which has never 
been determined (see above). A less shadowy claim might have been based 
by England on a map in the Spanish archives, dated 1591, with the legend 
over an island in the delta: " Aqui estan los Ingleses," that is, "Here 
are the Englisli." 



74 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TIJAVEL 

question, and could scarcely be seriously challenged. 
Hence the Court of Arbitration, by its final award 
(October 1899), npheld this line except in two places 
— Barima Point with the lower course of the Barinia 
river, which is assigned to Venezuela ; and farther 
inland, where the boundary, instead of following the 
Cuyuni river to its head, ascends its Wenamu tributary, 
thus leaving the Cuyuni goldfiekls to Venezuela. 

It is not without interest to note that certain docu- 
jnents of the eighteenth century preserved in the archives 
of the Capuchin Friars at Eome show the whole seaboard 
between the Orinoco and the Essequibo in possession of 
the Dutch. 

Towards Colombia the frontier, referred for settlement 
to Spain, was laid down in 1891 rather to the advantage 
of the western republic, to which was left most of the 
Goajira I'eninsula, besides the San Faustino district in 
the Eio Zulia valley, and the left side of the Upper 
Orinoco between the Meta and Guaviare affluents. 
Farther south the line of demarcation coincides with the 
Ptio Atabapo to about 20 miles above Yavita, beyond 
which it runs due south across several other Orinoco 
affluents to the Guainia headstream of the Pdo Negro, 
which is then followed to the Brazilian frontier at 
Cucahy. Here the line, as agreed to by treaty with 
Brazil in 1859, runs east, north, and again east, to British 
Guiana near Roraima, at first following the crest of the 
divide between the Baria and Cauaburi tributaries of the 
Ptio Neo-ro, and -coinciding farther east with the Sierra de 
Parima, that is, the water-parting between the streams 
flowing north to the Orinoco and through the Ptio Branco 
south to the Amazon. These are, at all events to a large 
extent, natural frontiers, which have the effect of leaving 
nearly the whole of the Orinoco basin to Venezuela. 



VENEZUELA 



75 



The coastlands from the Orinoco delta to the Goajmi 
Peninsula, together with the adjacent islets of Cubagua, 
Margarita, Tortuga, Orchilla, and Aves, form part of the 
republic, which thus delimited comprises an area approxi- 
mately estimated at nearly 600,000 square miles, or 
rather more than one-sixth of Europe,^ with scarcely a 
third of the population of Belgium. But Venezuela con- 
sists for the must part of an almost uninhabited wilderness 
of uplands and llanos (plains), which were but little 
known beyond the settled districts before the explorations 
of Dr. W. Sievers in 1885 and again in 1892-93. The 
extremely irregular distribution of the population is 
shown in the subjoined table of the states and territories 
constituting the Federal Kepublic of Venezuela : — 



States : — 


Area ill sq. m. 


Population 
(1S91). 


ilii-anda 


33,696 


484,509 


Carabobo 


2,984 


198,021 


Bermudez 


32,243 


300,597 


Zamora . . • . 


25,212 


246,676 


Lara 


9,296 


246,760 


Los Andes 


14,719 


336,146 


Falcon and Zulia . 


36,212 


224,566 


Bolivar . 


88,701 


50,289 


Federal District 


45 


89,133 


TERPaTORIES : 






Goajira . 


3,608 


65,990 


Alto Orinoco . 


119,780\ 


45,197 


Amazonas 


90, 928 J 


Colon . 


166 


129 


Yuruari 


81,123 


22,392 


Caura . 


22,564 


— 


Armisticio 


7,046 


— 


Delta . 


25,347 


7,222 


Total 


593,943 


2,323,-527 



1 This, however, includes the whole of the recently disputed territories 
about the Orinoco delta, nearly 50,000 square miles altogether. 



76 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Of this scanty population, which, however, shows an 
increase of about 250,000 over that of the census for 
1881, as many as 326,000 were returned as full-blood 
Indians, and of these 66,000 were still absolutely inde- 
pendent, 20,000 reduced, but living in the tribal state, 
and 240,000 civilised, that is, occupying permanent 
settlements like the general population, but still speaking 
their original mother- tongues, chiefly dialects of the 
Barre, Carib, and Arawak stock languages. Apart from 
a small but unknown percentage of pure white descent, 
the rest of the inhabitants may be broadly described as 
more or less civilised but turlnilent Hispano-American 
Mestizos of Spanish speech. There is, however, a strain 
of black blood perceptible, especially in the seaports, due 
to the 50,000 Negroes and Mulattos emancipated in 
1830, and since then absorbed in the general population. 

Physical Features — General Reliet 

Were the north equatorial section of the continent 
again flooded to a depth of a few hundred feet by the 
old inland sea, the general configuration of the Venezuelan 
region would stand out in bold relief. The marine 
waters, covering about 200,000 square miles of the 
present Orinoco basin, would be enclosed on the west and 
north by a mountain system rooted in the Colombian 
Andes, and sweeping in a gentle curve round to its 
eastern extremity at the island of Trinidad. This 
system, which consists, like the Andes generally, of a 
coast range — the Sierra de Mar, and an inland range — 
the Sierra de Merida, with its eastern extensions — would 
be seen projecting in a continuous or nearly unbroken 
line between the Caribbean and the Inland Sea, while 
the latter would encircle towards the south-east another 



VENEZUELA 77 

upland region extending eastwards through the Guianas 
to the Atlantic. 

These uplands, like those of Brazil, from which they are 
now separated by the Amazon valley, but with which 
they would appear to be geologically connected, comprise 
within Venezuelan territory the Sierra de Parima (Parime), 
Pacaraima, and other ridges and plateaux of very irregular 
outline, but forming a complete divide between the Lower 
Amazon and Orinoco basins, as the northern system does 
between the Orinoco and the Caribbean Sea. Venezuela 
is thus seen to consist of three distinct geographical 
regions, whose respective areas may be approximately 
estimated as under : — 

Ai-ea in sq. miles. 
Central lowlands, i.e., the Orinoco llanos or plains in 

their widest extent 300,000 

Northern uplands : coast and inland ranges . , . 100,000 
South-eastern uplands ....... 190,000 

Total . . .590.000 



Northern Uplands — Sierra de Merida — Coast Range 

Hitherto the northern system has been commonly 
regarded as an eastern extension of the Cordillera de los 
Andes, to which at the southern extremity of the conti- 
nent would correspond another eastern but submarine 
extension running from Fuegia to South Georgia. But 
all such geographical parallelisms, so much in favour with 
the ancients, have generally had to yield to modern 
scientific inquiry, and Dr. Sievers now contests the 
views of the older geologists regarding the homogeneous 
Andean character of the north Venezuelan system taken 
as a whole. It is argued with much force that the term 
Andes should be restricted, as it is in popular use, to the 
Sierra de Merida, which properly terminates eastwards 



78 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND 1 RAVEL 

at a pass 1190 feet high leading from the basin of the 
Yaracui coast-stream to that of the Cojedes, which drains 
to the Orinoco through the Eios Portnguesa and Apure. 
This gap would appear to separate two absolutely distinct 
orographic systems — that of the Cordillera to the west, 
and to the east the " Carib Mountains," that is, the coast 
range, which is much older (gneiss, mica-schists and 
metamorphic rocks) and belongs rather to the now mostly 
submerged or denuded chains of the Antilles. Neverthe- 
less it cannot be denied that from the purely geographical 
point of view the coast range forms a regular extension 
of the Colombian Andes. 

Of all the Venezuelan ranges the Sierra de Mericla is 
by far tlie most elevated. It alone claims the title of 
Nevada, " snowy," thanks to four or five of its peaks 
which rise above the snow-line. Such are the Concha 
and Coluna, south-east of Merida, both 15,-120 feet high, 
while Concha boasts even of a little glacier, which sup- 
plies Merida with ice. As everywhere in the Andes, the 
Merida highlands develop two or more parallel ridges, 
connected by transverse chains of older formation — 
crystalline rocks and schists of great age. The upland 
plateaux enclosed by these lofty ramparts, and standing over 
11,000 feet above sea-level, take the name oi parimos — 
bleak, treeless plains, swept by keen blasts or wrapped in 
frozen vapour, and generally presenting an Arctic climate 
within a few degrees of the equator. Towards the north 
the steep cretaceous slopes fall abruptly down to the 
narrow strip of woodland separating them from the 
Maracaibo lagoon, and here a distinct divide is formed 
between the torrents rushing down to the lake and the 
streams flowing with a less rapid course to the Apure 
affluent of the Orinoco. 



VENEZUELA 79 



Cordillera de la Silla 



East of the Merida highlands follows the Cordillera 
de la Silla, the " Saddle Eange," which terminates some- 
what abruptly at Cape Codera. Like some sections of 
the Peruvian Andes, the Silla presents exceedingly steep 
rocky walls to the sea, leaving no beach or inlet except 
the little haven of Guaira, and almost everywhere rising 
abruptly from the marine depths to a mean altitude of 
about 5000 feet. The almost vertical sides oi Naiguata, 
the culminating peak (9130 feet), were for the first time 
scaled by Spence and Ernest in 1874. The Silla, which 
gives its name to the system, is only about 370 feet 
lower ; yet it was near this peak that the ditticult track 
formerly led over the range from Caracas on the southern 
slope down to the port of Guaira. 

Beyond the Silla the Sierra de Mar is continued 
through the much less elevated Cumana (Cariaco) and 
Paria ranges to its termination at the Gulf of Paria 
over against Trinidad, which undoubtedly belongs to the 
same system. The Paria section, which culminates in a 
peak 3510 feet high, runs for a distance of 170 miles 
between the Paria and Cariaco inlets, and is entirely of 
igneous origin. It has no apparent connection with the 
rest of the system, and its existence may be associated 
with the formation of the Gulf of Cariaco, which was due 
to a submarine convulsion said to have occurred not long 
before the discovery. 

The Southern Uplands : Sierras Parima and Pacaraima 

Although the southern uplands cover a far more 
extensive space, they nowhere attain the altitude of the 
northern highlands ; nor do they anywhere develop such 



80 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

sharply defined mountain ranges. To the whole system 
is commonly extended the expression Sierra Parima, in 
reference to the mythical Lake Parima, that is " Great 
Water," where dwelt El Dorado in a golden palace glitter- 
ing with preciovis stones, and whither Pialeigh and so 
many other adventurers went in quest of his fabulous 
treasures. But the sierra might seem to be almost as 
mythical as the lake. The whole region, which still 
awaits careful exploration, would seem to have the 
aspect of a vast turtle-back plateau, sloping north to the 
(Jrinoco and south to the Amazon, traversed by no great 
mountain ranges anywhere, but crossed in various direc- 
tions by short ridges, and presenting steep escarpments 
rather than true ranges towards the Amazonian plains. 
These escarpments, that is, the Sierra Parima, with its 
eastern extension the Sierra Pacaraima, were not even 
visited by the Commission appointed to lay down the 
Brazilo - Venezuelan frontier line along their crest in 
1880-83. They appear to consist of a granite core 
underlying old sandstone strata, and even their highest 
peaks probably fall below 6500 feet, while those about 
the sources of the Orinoco affluents are estimated by 
Chaffanjon at not more than 4000 or 4500 feet. The 
Sierra de Mato, one of the northern ridges running close 
to the right bank of the Orinoco, rises in a peak measured 
by Codazzi to a height of 6170 feet, and in its upper 
course the main stream is dominated by the Ccrro Duida 
(8120 feet), a most conspicuous landmark, visible for a 
great distance up and down the river and indicating the 
point where the Cassiquiare branches off towards the 
Amazon basin. But this pyramidal bluff is exceeded by 
the neighbouring Sierra Maraguaca (8230 feet), which 
was long regarded as the culminating point of the south- 
east Venezuelan uplands. But this honour must now be 



VENEZUELA 8 1 

transferred to Mount Icutu, highest dome of the lofty 
Sierra Guamapi, which was first approached in 1897 by 
Major Stanley Paterson/ and estimated by him at 11,000 
feet. Icutu, which with its rapidly sloping sides and 
bulging summit, presents somewhat the aspect of a 
uitjantic toad-stool, stands near the source of the Ciichivero, 
a small stream flowing north to the right bank of the 
Orinoco below the Apure contluence. 



Earthquakes — Igneous Phenomena 

Although Venezuela is literally an unstable land, 
subject to frequent and violent underground disturbances, 
one of which destroyed Caracas with 12,000 of its 
inhabitants in 1812, there is not a single active volcano 
in the whole region. But indications of former eruptions 
are seen in the lavas and scoriae of San Juan de los 
Morros on the southern slope of the Sierra de Mar. At 
one time it was supposed that burning mountains existed 
in many places. But the flickering flames that gave rise 
to the belief are now known to be in no way connected 
with such igneous displays. They are, however, a suffi- 
ciently remarkable phenomenon of the class popularly 
known as will-o'-the-wisps, of more frequent occurrence 
and more widely diffused than in any other part of the 
world. These curious but harmless inflammable vapours 
are seen dancing about at night in every part of the 
country, on lowlands and uplands alike, on the flanks of 
Duida and of Cuchimano near Cumana, as well as on the 
marshy banks of the Catatumbo and other streams flow- 
ing to Lake Maracaibo. On the llanos they flare up 
amid the tall grasses without burning them, and they 
probably indicate the presence of immense stores of gases 

"- Geo(jr. Jour. (January 1899), p. 39 sq. 
VOL. I. G 



82 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

and naphtha reserved for future use. At least the 
j^tchy substances oozing up in the Orinoco delta and 
elsewhere seem to he associated with the famous bi- 
tuminous lake of Trinidad, and to point like it to vast 
underground reservoirs of asphalt. 



The Venezuelan Llanos 

From the southern slopes of the northern uplands the 
central plains stretch away to the Guiana forest tracts 
beyond the Orinoco delta, and occupy the whole region 
between the Sierra de Merida and the northern slopes of 
the Parima uplands. Following the trend of the old 
marine basin, they sweep like a great arm of the sea 
round the western escarpments of these heights, and 
here merge southwards in the Amazonian plains. The 
llanos are thus largely conterminous with the lower level 
of the Orinoco basin, although the expression is generally 
restricted to the region bounded by the left bank of that 
river. Even in this limited sense, they are far from corre- 
sponding everywhere with the popular idea of a vast 
level or slightly undulating treeless or grassy plain, like 
the North American prairies or the Argentine pampas. 
Even after escaping from the higher uplands, tlie Apure, 
]\Ieta, Yichada, Guaviare, and other north - western 
affluents of the Orinoco, have a fairly rapid course, 
obstructed in some places by rapids, thus showing a 
gradual rise from the bed of the main stream towards the 
Colombian and Venezuelan highlands. Tliis rise above the 
former level of the old marine basin represents a portion 
of the sedimentary matter washed down by the running 
waters, and may therefore be regarded as the talus of 
the encirling Cordilleras. Hence the local expressions 
llanos altos, " upper plains," and llanos bajos, " lower 



VENEZUELA 83 

plains," the latter representing the old bed of the inland 
sea, and still standing at a mean elevation of scarcely more 
than 300 feet above its level. Everywhere the llanos 
altos present an agreeably diversified aspect, with much 
broken ground, watered by the upper courses of the 
Orinoco affluents, and clothed in some districts with a rich 
tropical vegetation. 

The route followed by Kamon Paez from Maracay to 
the Apure valley lay at first through sugar-cane, indigo, 
and tobacco fields, varied by extensive cacao plantations 
flourishing beneath the shade of the coral-tree {Erytlirina). 
The wooded tracts possess a great wealth of valuable 
trees, such as the Vera {Lignum vitm), so hard that it turns 
the edge of the sharpest tools ; the Guayacan, suitable 
for carving and cabinet-work ; the beautiful Alcornoquc, 
which offers a grateful shade to the cattle during the 
summer heats ; and the Brazil-wood of commerce, as 
abundant here as in the reg-ion to which it Qrives its name, 



Scenery of the Llanos 

But even the llanos properly so called have their 
attractions. From the higher slopes a prospect is com- 
manded of one of the grandest scenes in nature. At 
your feet lies a lovely expanse of meadow, fresh and 
smooth as the best-trimmed lawn, with troops of horses 
and countless herds of cattle dispersed over the plains. 
Here and there the eye alights on glittering pools or 
lakelets left by the last rains, and now alive with an 
immense variety of aquatic birds. As far as the gaze 
can reach, the undulating grassy plain appears like a 
shoreless ocean petrified after a storm. No language 
could convey a true picture of the varied beauties of the 
scene — the harmonious effects of lig-ht and shade ; the 



04 COMPENDIUM OF CxEOCxEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

l)lending of the various green, blue, and purple tints flit- 
ting ill the sunlight over the vast panorama ; the stately 
palms gracefully fanning the glowing atmosphere, with 
their majestic crowns of broad and shining foliage. 

Conspicuous especially is the CojJeniicia tectorum, as 
valuable as it is beautiful, with as many names as the 
uses to which it is put. To the stock-breeders and 
settlers it is known as the palma de cobija, the " thatch 
palm," because its leaves serve to thatch their farmsteads ; 
it is the palma de sombrero, the " hat palm " of the straw- 
hat makers ; and by wayfarers it is termed the ^;(x/?;2a 
de eihanico, the " fan-palm," being so used by them against 
the flies during their wanderings over the steppe. Still 
more beautiful is the Saman, a species of mimosa, which 
grows profusely along the banks of the Apure and other 
streams, spreading its delicate feathery foliage aloft, like 
a dainty parasol. Extensive tracts are overgrown with 
this graceful tree, which we are told might supply suffi- 
cient material for the reconstruction of all the fleets of 
the world. 

More characteristic of the llanos proper are the grasses, 
often more curious than valuable. Such is the worthless 
(jamelote, tall and sharp as a Toledo blade, but useless 
even as fodder. In the Apure district is seen the singu- 
lar phenomenon of the mcdanos or ranges of low dunes, 
formed by the loose sand drifting before the wind over 
the boundless plain. They are continually shifting their 
form, rising at one time well above the surface, at 
another dispersed as tine dust over the steppe. But in 
one district, where they have been bound fast by the 
roots of the gamelote, they have been transformed to a 
low range of permanent hills the so-called Medanos del 
San Martin. Some of the grasses are soft and pliable as 
silk, and it is owing to their nutritious qualities that the 



VENEZUELA 8 5 

alluvial plains of the Apure and its tributaries have be- 
come so noted for stock-breeding. 



Hydrography — Lake Maracaibo 

On the rock-bound north coast there is no room for 
the development of fluvial basins. Hence between the 
Goajira Peninsula and the Gulf of Paria there is only 
one navigable watercourse — the Catatumbo — all the rest 
being mere torrents or insignificant coast-streams, which 
find their way in independent channels to Lake Maracaibo 
and the Carribean Sea. From the precipitous slopes of 
the encircling Cordilleras Maracaibo receives several 
such streams, whose deposits are slowly filling in this 
extensive but shallow inlet. The most copious is the 
Catatumbo, which, besides the Orinoco, is the only river 
in Venezuela used for navigation. The main channel 
with its Zulia affluent is accessible to small steamers 
throughout the year ; but its basin belongs in part only 
to Venezeula, its head-waters having their source in the 
Santander uplands, Colombia. In fact, it is through 
its upper valley that the Colombians gain access to 
Maracaibo. 

This marine inlet, the largest in the southern con- 
tinent, is rather in the nature of a lake or lagoon than of 
a gulf, being so far landlocked that the tides are scarcely 
felt inside the bar. A little way beyond this bar its 
waters are quite fresh, the supplies it receives from the 
surrounding streams being greatly in excess of the marine 
currents. The " Sack of Venezuela," as it is called, has 
a circuit of 3 7 miles, with an area of 9000 square miles, 
and an extreme depth of 500 feet, but shoaling rapidly 
towards the Mochila or inner basin. 

The outer and much larger basin was formerly known 



86 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

as the Gulf of ^'enice, a name connected with that of 
the republic itself. When Hojeda and Vespucci first 
navigated its waters in 1499 they noticed on its shelving 
margin one of those aquatic stations, or groups of pile 
dwellings, which are met so frequently in similar localities 
in Malaysia, New Guinea, and other parts of the world. 
The waterways between the rows of houses, with the 
" gondolas " (canoes) moored to tlie posts, were so sugges- 
tive of Venice that the place was named Venezuela, 
" little Venice," while the inlet for a time bore the name 
of Venice itself. From this aquatic station the sonorous 
term Venezuela spread to the whole region. The case 
is exactly parallel to that of Brunei, where are also to 
be seen such pile-dwellings, and the name of which, since 
the first visit of ^Magellan's associate Pigafetta, has been 
extended to the whole island of Borneo. 



Lake of Valencia 

Besides the Maracaibo lagoon Venezuela possesses 
at least one real fresh-water basin — the Lake of Valencia, 
which fills a great part of the rich Aragua valley, and is 
one of the most remarkable sheets of water in the world. 
Although it seems completely encircled by the coast and 
inland ranges. Lake Tacarigua, as it is called by the 
natives, has two different outlets on the west side close to 
the city of Valencia. By one of these emissaries it has 
occasionally sent its overflow through the Trincheras 
northwards to the Agua Caliente affluent of the Caribbean 
Sea, and by the other it has communicated several times 
through the Paito southwards with the Pao tributary of 
the Orinoco. According to the oscillations of level, the 
Caiio Camburi, that is, the southern emissary, has thus 
been alternately an affluent and an effluent of this erratic 



A'ENEZUELA 8? 

.lacustrine basin. Its waters, which iiave become slightly 
brackish, and have an extreme depth of 300 feet, had 
been steadily subsiding for some years before 1882 ; but 
since that time the lake appears to have again acquired 
some measure of stability, and is even said to be now 
rising to its former high level, when it discharged to the 
Orinoco. 

The Orinoco Basin 

The Orinoco is one of the great rivers of the world, 
being exceeded in volume only by the Amazon and 
Parana in South America, and elsewhere by the Missis- 
sippi, St. Lawrence, Congo, Niger, Yang-tse, and Brahma- 
putra. But several others surpass it in length, for 
although it draws contributions from the eastern slopes 
of the Colombian Cordillera, its course lies nearly ten 
degrees north of the equator, where the width of the 
continent is greatly contracted by the rapidly receding 
contour-line of the Guianas. Thus the Orinoco delta 
stands about twelve degrees of longitude west of the 
Amazon estuary, which to some extent is a measure of 
the different lengths of the two main streams. 

But the farthest head-waters of the Orinoco, or 
Orinucu, the form given by its first explorer, Diego de 
Ordaz in 1531, lie not in the Colombian Cordillera nor 
in the Sierra de Merida, but in the Parima uplands, 
where its source was discovered by Chaffanjon in a rivulet 
above the Salto de los Franceses, at no great distance from 
the Cassiquiare confluence. The channel of this stream, 
which forms the connecting link between the Amazon 
and Orinoco systems, is continued southwards through 
another stream, which again ramifies into the Baria and 
Canaburi, both affluents of the Eio Negro. At the junc- 
tion of the Cassiquiare, which sends only about a third 



88 COMI'EXDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

of its current to the Orinoco, the bed of the main stream 
stands not more than 920 feet above sea-level. Thus 
the al:»solute fall from this point to the delta, a distance 
of about 1300 miles, is less than 9 inches per mile, 
so that by the removal of a few obstructions here and 
there the main stream, with many of its ramifications, 
would be accessible for liglit craft to the foot of the 
Cordillera, and through the Cassiquiare to the heart of 
the continent. Yet these magnificent inland waters are 
at present (1900) utilised in a regular way only by a 
single steamer of the Eoyal Mail Steamship Company, 
plying once a fortnight between Trinidad and Ciudad 
Bolivar. So gentle is the current to this point that the 
voyage up-stream takes only six hours more than the 
return trip — 36 and 30 hours respectively. During the 
rainy season, from May to November, smaller steamers 
continue the service from Bolivar to Nutrias on the 
Middle Apure. But beyond Caicara, at the Apure con- 
fluence, there is no regular navigation at all, although 
steamers ascend as occasion requires to various stations 
below the Apure rapids. 

Beyond the Cassiquiare junction the main stream, 
keeping close to the Parima escarpments and in some 
places even forcing its way through the projecting spurs, 
trends north by west, north, and north by east to the 
Apure confluence, where it bends round to the east for 
the rest of its course to the delta. In the section 
between the Cassiquiare and the Apure it receives only 
one notable contribution — the Ventuari — from the 
Parima uplands. But on its left bank it is joined by 
several important affluents, such as the Guainia, the 
Guaviare, Meta, and Arauca, all descending from the 
Colombian Cordillera, and traversing the llanos in nearly 
parallel south-easterly valleys. The Guaviare, which is 



VENEZUELA 8 9 

navigable for small steamers for about 600 miles to the 
Ari-Ari ford, rolls down a volume of no less than 11 2,0 00 
cubic feet per second during the floods. 

Between the Guaviare and Meta confluences are 
developed the romantic Maypures and the Atures rapids, 
which are the only serious obstructions of this nature 
throughout the whole course of the main stream, and are 
caused, not by any general rise in the fluvial valley, but 
only by the projecting Parima heights, which are here 
and there cut right through instead of being turned by 
a bend to the west. The Atures rapids, about 6 miles 
long with a total fall of 30 feet, are indicated from a 
distance by two notable bluffs, the Cerro Pintado, " Painted 
Hill," and the Cerro de las Muertos, "Dead Men's Hill," the 
former so called from the rude figures with which they 
are covered, the latter from the sepulchral chambers in 
its cavernous recesses. Jointly the two cataracts repre- 
sent a total fall of not more than 70 feet, but present 
an insurmountable obstacle to the navigation even at 
high water. 

The Meta, which debouches below the Ature falls, is 
even a more important tributary than the Guaviare. 
Drawing its supplies through numerous branches from 
the Cordillera on the upper llanos, it expands at times to 
a width of nearly a mile, and would be navigable for 
large vessels but for the sandbanks obstructing the 
channel at various points. As it is, steamers drawing 
8 or 10 feet ascend about a third of its course during 
the floods, when it discharges a volume estimated at 
160,000 cubic feet per second. 

Beyond the Arauca follows the Apure, the typical river 
of the llanos, joining from the west and consequently 
continuing the main axis of the Orinoco valley from its 
delta right up to the Colombian Andes. Hence, in a 



90 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAYEL 

hydrograpliic sense, many geographers have regarded the 
Apure as the true upper course of the Orinoco. Even 
from the standpoint of navigable length, if not of volume, 
it might still claim to hold this position, because the 
navigation of the main stream is arrested at the Atures 
rapids, whereas no falls or other obstructions interrupt 
the placid course of the Apure below the confluence of 
its two main branches — the Sarare and Uribante. Its 
drainage area extends up the slopes both of the Colombian 
and Venezuelan Andes, and develops a vast inland delta 
which mingles its lateral channels with the neighbouring 
Arauca, and during the floods covers a space 6 or 7 
miles in extent. 

About midway between this and the marine delta, the 
old town of Angostura, the " Narrows," now renamed 
Ciudad Bolivar in honour of the " Liberator," marks the 
head of the tidal waters at a distance of 260 miles from 
the sea. At this point the mean discharge per second 
is estimated by Orton at 500,000 cubic feet, while the 
depth of the lower reaches in many places exceeds 180 
feet. At the Xarrows the annual rise varies from 40 to 
50 feet, beginning about the middle of April and con- 
tinuing till November, when the plains are often again 
transformed to a great inland sea 100 or 120 miles in 
extent. Along these periodically flooded banks the 
natives live in pile-dwellings of two stories, one occupied 
at low water, the other during the inundations. 

The Delta 

As it approaches the sea the main current continues 
its easterly course in a straight line to Barima Point, 
without throwing off any important liranches to the right, 
that is, to the conterminous district of British Guiana, or 



VENEZUELA 91 

higher up. Thus the whole of the deltaic region is 
developed toward the north, and in fact, with a front of 
about 430 miles, occupies all the space between the Boca 
de iSTavios, " Ships' Mouth," and the Gulf of Paria. It is 
divided into the Lower or Southern, and Upper or Northern 
Delta, by the Macaros, another navigable Branch, which 
presents the shortest route from Trinidad to the interior, 
and is consequently utilised by the steamers plying 
between Port of Spain and Ciudad Bolivar. The delta 
has a total area of 7000 square miles, and is intersected 
by as many as fifty channels flowing directly to the sea ; 
but of these many frequently shift their beds, and not more 
than seven are permanently navigable by large vessels. 

Subjoined are approximate estimates of the chief 
features of the Orinoco basin, viewed as a whole : — 



Drainage area .... 
Length ..... 
Length of navigable waters 
Discharge per second at low water 
, , , , , ) at high water 

Mean discharge per second 
Mean annual rainfall 



364,000 sq. miles. 

1,450 miles. 

4,300 ,, 
238,000 cubic feet. 
875,000 ,, ,, 
500,000 ,, 

76 inches. 



Orinoco Scenery 

The banks of the Orinoco are fringed along its many 
windings by magnificent forest trees, which project their 
shadows far across the stream on both sides. During 
the rainy season its waters rise above the level of these 
woodlands, covering the trunks of the trees, and often 
exposing their upper roots after subsidence. Amid the 
rich and varied foliage are everywhere conspicuous the 
thick and leathery leaves of such plants as flourish only 
beneath the bright skies of the tropical world, where the 
glorious crowns of leafage never lose that freshness and 



92 COMPENDIUM OF CxEOGEAPHY AND TPiAVP:L 

luxuriance which is assumed by northern woodlands only 
in the lovely season of early spring. Hence the darker 
tones, blending with the gleams of flitting sunshine, 
develop a play of colour effects on which the eye never 
wearies to gaze. Countless creepers twine themselves 
round the stems and branches of the trees, forming here 
and there dense masses of foliage, impenetrable to the 
keenest sight and often bathed in the loveliest and most 
dazzling colours. In many places the observer lights 
upon natural bowers and arboreal groupings displaying a 
wealth of beauty, and even a symmetry, which could 
scarcely be imitated by the most consummate art. 

Gulf of Paria 

On entering the sea the fluvial currents are caught up 
by the marine current, which here sets steadily from the 
south-east to the north-west, in the direction of the 
" Serpent's Mouth," between the delta and Trinidad. 
But this dangerous passage is too narrow and too shallow 
to admit the whole stream, which here ramifies round 
Trinidad. The inner branch, further swollen by the 
western channels of the delta, penetrates into the Gulf of 
Paria, which thus serves as a receptacle for much of the 
alluvial matter carried seawards by the Orinoco. Some 
of the silt is no doubt again dispersed through the 
" Dragon's Mouth," as the northern passage is called ; but 
enougtx remains to gradually raise the bed of the gulf and 
thus restore Trinidad to the mainland, from which it was 
torn by some igneous disturbance at a remote period. 

Climate 

As in Mexico and other parts of Spanish America, 
the climates in Venezuela are largely disposed in vertical 



VENEZUELA 93 

order. The hot zone, ascending from sea -level to an 
altitude of about 2300 feet, has a mean temperature of 
77° Falir., and may on the whole be described as not 
unhealthy. Above this the temperate zone, with an 
average temperature of about 65°, ranges to a height of 
6600 feet, and is one of the most delightful regions in 
the world — a perfect Eden of natural loveliness, where 
are combined all the outward elements conducive to 
health and an agreeable existence. Here the coldest 
months are December and January, when the thermometer 
seldom falls below 59°, while in April and May, which 
are the hottest months, it scarcely ever rises above 77°. 

In the cold zone are comprised all the highland 
districts from 6600 feet upwards. In the Sierra de 
]\Ierida it penetrates at some points into the region of 
perpetual snow. The almost Arctic character of the 
elevated parimos in these highlands has already been 
described. Here the mean annual temperature is little 
more than 5° or 6° above freezing-point, and the altitude 
of 14,600 feet marks the upper limit of vegetation, which 
ranges so nmch higher in the western Cordilleras. 



Flora 

In Venezuela the vegetable kingdom is exceptionally 
rich and varied. It constitutes at present the chief 
natural resource of the country, its products forming 
almost the only staple of trade, while many of the species 
are extensively cultivated. 

Foremost amongst these is the coffee plant, which has 
succeeded in so many parts of the New World, and con- 
stitutes the chief source of wealth in Venezuela. The 
best coffee grows in the temperate districts, and more 
especially in those tracts that are exposed to frequent early 



94 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

mists. In the warmer lands it nourishes Lest beneath 
the shade of large trees, and it is noteworthy that it is 
always cultivated in this way in the Caffa uplands, where 
the plant is indigenous. In the fourth or iifth year it 
yields its first crop, which is gathered in October. The 
berries, resembling little red cherries, have their outer 
pulpy part first removed by a special apparatus, and are 
then left for a short time to decay, after which tliey are 
dried in large paved enclosures. They are afterwards 
passed on to the trilla, where, either by a stamping or 
rolling process, they are freed from their parchment-like 
inner husks. From the trilla they pass to the venteador, 
where they are subjected to a final cleansing operation. 
In 1898 the area under coffee was estimated at nearly 
200,000 acres, which yielded about 50,000 tons for 
exportation. 

Other important vegetable products are cacao {Thco- 
hroma cacao), which thrives best in the hot low -lying 
districts, and needs very little attention on the part of 
the growers. The finest quality comes from the planta- 
tions of Chuao, which are owned by the University of 
Caracas, and produce a yearly crop of about 1300 lbs., 
while the whole State yields over 70,000 lbs. The 
natural home of the cacao-tree is in the great virgin 
forests of the Amazon, where it still grows wild in great 
profusion. It belongs to that class of plants in which 
the flowers and fruit have the singular property of 
sprouting directly from the woody stem and branches. 

Of sugars the Tahiti cane {Saccharum officinaimm) is 
the variety most widely cultivated. The ripe cane is at 
first crushed between iron rollers, the juice flowing 
through pipes into a large reservoir. From this it is 
drawn off into iron caldrons, and boiled up to a certain 
degree, the scum being removed and the fluid otherwise 



VENEZUELA 95 

cbriiied. It is then poured into wooden moulds, where 
it gradually hardens. One of the tinest kinds of cotton, 
known as the South Sea Island variety, has been success- 
fully cultivated in the district of Lake Valencia and in 
several other localities. But the total yield is inconsider- 
able, and appears to be falling off. Indigo also, formerly 
cultivated to some extent, has been killed by the aniline 
dyes, or else has given place to the more profitable coffee 
industry. Of maize the white, red, black, yellow, and 
violet varieties are grown. Amongst the medicinal 
plants the most valual^le are chinchona, of which there 
appear to be many varieties, though the botanical names 
of several are unknown ; and sarsaioarilla, a climbing 
plant of a woody nature, much esteemed as a blood- 
purifier, and exported to the annual value of about £9000. 
Amongst other less important plants are the Amargoso, 
noted for its intensely bitter bark; the curious Maya 
fruit {Broraelia chrysaniha) ; the Micadia gonodada, locally 
called </«aca, also an excellent blood - purifier ; Guazuma 
ulmisotia, the bark of which is used in the preparation of 
refreshing drinks ; Weinmannia glabra, the bark of which 
has tanning properties ; Fepe de cola, the seed of Cola 
acuminata, said to be a specific in affections of the liver ; 
the Pcpe de cedron, or seed of the Sinatra cedron, reputed 
to be a successful antidote against the bite of venomous 
snakes ; the OJo de Zamuro, a cure for asthma ; the fruit 
of the Cujajo, from the tallow-like fatty substance of 
which candles are made ; and several other oleaginous 
products. 

Fauna 

In Venezuela are represented nearly all the members 
of the South American mammalian fauna — the howling 
monkey and five other anthropoid species, several of the 



9() COiMrENDIUiM OF GEOGKAPHV AND TRAVEL 

cat family (jaguar, puma, ocelot), the sloth, ant-eater, 
and numerous species of bats, besides the lamantin 
and the lonina, two cetaceans which frequent the 
Lower Orinoco. In the same basin are also met three 
kinds of saurians — the true crocodile, sometimes ovei- 
20 feet long, the cayman and the bava {Alligator 
punctatus). 

Of considerable economic value are the turtles of the 
Middle Orinoco, which lay a prodigious number of eggs, 
chiefly in the district between the Meta and Apure 
rivers. From these are annually extracted some 20,000 
gallons of oil, and many of the turtles are about 3 feet 
long, weighing as much as 70 lbs. Another oil, the so- 
called " caripe butter," is obtained from the fjiiacharo, a 
bird which frequents the Caripe caves west of the Gulf of 
Paria, and other parts of the coast as far as Colombia. 
In the esteros, as the rich grazing- grounds of the llanos 
are called, the perennial pools and rivulets attract an 
endless variety of animal and especially bird life. The 
garzeros, or " heronries," as the myriads of flocks are 
called from the dominant species, form colonies miles in 
extent, and comprise every imaginable variety of heron, 
crane, stork, ibis, some snow-white, some a delicate blue, 
others gray or pink, and many a brilliant scarlet. Well- 
beaten tracks are made under the bushes by the tramp 
of the small members of the cat family, who prey on the 
fled2;lin"s of these feathered communities. Notable is 
the gidriri, a small duck so called from its cry, which at 
times rises on the wing in such incredible multitudes as 
for a moment to produce the effect of a solar eclipse. 
The marshy and malarious districts are infested by the 
culeb7'a de agua, the " water-snake," as the huge anaconda 
is here called. Its rival, the boa-constrictor, keeps to 
the woods, and both prey on wild animals, such as deer 



VENEZUELA 



97 



and the capybara, and on calves or colts when they stray 
from the fold. 

The jaguar ranges everywhere ; alligators swarm in 







ANACOKDA. 



all the streams, while the rattle-snake and even the more 
dreaded lachesis, besides other venomous species, lurk in 
the meadows and thickets near the wayside. Nearly all 
the streams teem with edible fish, and the fresh-water 
turtle, whose breeding-grounds along the river banks 

VOL. I H 



98 COaMPP]NDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

yield prodigious quantities of eggs, which do not appear 
to be appreciably diminished though largely preyed 
upon by man and animals. But the running waters are 
also infested by several noxious creatures, such as the 
sting-ray, armed with a sharp spine several inches long; 
the 'payara, whose upper jaws are furnished with a pair 
of fangs like those of the rattle-snake ; and the electric 
eel, with a battery strong enough to administer a powerful 
shock to horses entering the shallow muddy pools to 
quench their thirst. 

Most dreaded is the really fornddable carihe, a blood- 
thirsty creature like the gold-fish, but stouter, with a 
ferocious-looking bull-dog head and projecting lower jaw. 
With its sharp three-edged saw-like teeth it can bite in 
two a strong steel fish-hook, and it seems to scent blood 
from afar, judging from the shoals that rapidly gather 
round a wounded animal in the water. It will even 
attack wounded alligators in this way, as well as the 
crocodile, of which one true species is found in the 
Orinoco waters. But the wild hog is not an indigenous 
species, but the common European pig run wild. In 
some districts it has multiplied prodigiously, and often 
causes great damage by uprooting the nutritious grasses, 
which are usually replaced by a rank worthless vegetation. 

Inhabitants — The Aborigines 

Most of the tribal names recorded by the early 
writers have disappeared, or cannot now be identified. 
Many of these, however, were not ethnical but mere local 
designations, such as Pariagoto, Cnmana(]oto, " People of 
Paria," '' People of Cumana," and so on. But others 
indicated real tribal groups that have either been 
absorbed in the general Hispano- American population or 



100 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TPtAVEL 

else exterminated in the wars with the first settlers. 
Amongst the latter were probably the Ayamans, a 
dwarfish people met by Fredemann in the uplands south 
of Barquisimeto, and described as scarcely 3 feet 6 inches 
high. The statement, which has never been verified, may 
be true, because pygmies of about the same size have been 
seen in the Congo forest zone, and the remains of similar 
little people have been found in the pre-historic graves of 
Switzerland. The great bulk of the present Venezuelan 
aborigines belong to the Barri, Carih, and Arav:ak stocks, 
and it is interesting to note that Mr. im Thurn describes 
the Arawaks of Guiana as the shortest of all the natives 
of that region.^ Eeports have also been circulated by 
Mr. E. C. Haliburton and others of dwarfish or under- 
sized tribes in the Upper Amazon forests, and in Dutch 
Guiana, where they go by the name of Makalak, and are 
said to be of a " brilliant reddish-yellow " colour. But 
none of these reports are beyond suspicion, and there 
is at present no evidence to show that any of the 
Venezuelan tribes fall lielow the average height of the 
undersized peoples of the Andean plateaux or Fuegia. 

Numerous rock-carvings, or rude pictorial writings or 
scratchings occur in many districts on the banks of the 
Orinoco (Ature rapids), and even at altitudes of 7000 or 
8000 feet near the Naiguata peak in the Sierra de Mar. 
Such carvings as well as idols, or at least stone statues, 
abound especially in the Sierra de Merida, and the 
resemblance they bear to those of the Colombian plateau 
leave little doubt that they represent an easterly spread 
of Muysca culture in pre-Columbian times. By the 
present Indians, most of whom are descended from the 
Timotes, who were said to be of Muysca speech, these 
statues are regarded as mere munecos or " dolls." But if 

^ Among the hidians of Guiaiij p. 188. 



VENEZUELA 101 

a cross is carved on the face of any of these dolls they 
are at once transformed to sa7iticos, or "little saints," and' 
may then be worshipped like the other saints of the 
Eoman Calendar. 

On the Orinoco delta there still survive a few 
thousand of the amphibious Warraus (Guaraunos), who 
are already mentioned by Ealeigh, and described by 
many later observers. But they are diminishing in 
numbers, like the Maypures, Otomacos, Guaicas, Guaharibos, 
and most of the other Orinoco aborigines, who have been 
decimated by wars, epidemics, " fire-water," the forced 
labour system, and hardships of all kinds. All the tribal 
groups are destined to disappear at no distant date, if 
not by extinction by absorption in the gente de razon, 
the " rational people," as the settled and mixed com- 
munities are called. 



Europeans and Mestizos 

Few of the so-called white populations, except those 
of the Grita district on the northern slope of the Sierra 
de Merida, are of pure Spanish descent. Many of the 
first settlers were Basques, and for a long time a Basque 
Association enjoyed a monopoly of the trade with Spain. 
The seaports of La Guaira and Puerto Cabello were 
founded by them, and Bolivar, leader of the revolution, 
belonged to the same energetic race. The Catalonians 
are also largely represented, and all these Spaniards, 
whether of pure or mixed descent, are said to be com- 
pletely acclimatised not only in the temperate zone, but 
even on the low -lying coastlands and on the llanos. 
Thousands of other Europeans and Anglo-Americans 
enjoy perfect health in Caracas and the other large towns 
of the uplands, and the rich Aragua valley between the 



102 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

inland and the coast ranges is eminently suited for 
European settlement. 

Prospects of Immigrants 

But until a stable government is established, intending 
emigrants will be warned by the fate of the German 
Colony of Tovar from seeking new homes in tliis region. 
Carried away by his faith in Teutonic energy and endur- 
ance, the distinguished Italian naturalist, Agostino Codazzi, 
founded in 1842 a German agricultural settlement at this 
place, which stands on an elevated plateau some -40 miles 
from Caracas. For a few years the new arrivals, mostly 
irom the Black Forest, succeeded fairly well, and their 
picturesque homesteads, resembling Swiss chalets, gave 
signs of comfort and prosperity in the Tovar district. 
But about 1854 progress was arrested by the civil 
commotions, which for a number of years paralysed all 
industry and enterprise in Venezuela. In 1870 the 
whole settlement was laid waste by the soldiers of 
tiuzman Blanco, who converted the place into a fortified 
camp, demolishing whole rows of houses, and seizing every 
available object suitable for the purpose. Eedress or 
compensation could not be obtained, and since then the 
settlers, to the number of 1250, have been dispersed over 
the country. 

Historic Retrospect 

Venezuela began its colonial existence as a dependency 
of Xew Granada — -the present republic of Colombia — 
where the At/dicncia Rial was established at Bogota in 
1550. In 1718 the colony became a vice-royalty, 
and in 1777 the four provinces of ]\Iaracaibo, Caracas, 
Cumana, and Guiana, that is the present republic of 
Venezuela, were detached from Xew Granada and con- 



VENEZUELA 103 

stitiited a separate colony under the title of the " Cap- 
taincy-General of Venezuela." 

The War of Independence, begun in 1810, was for a 
moment arrested by the disastrous earthquake of 1812, 
when the capital was levelled to the ground. Advantage 
was taken by the clergy, nearly all royalists, of the coin- 
cidence that this catastrophe took place on Holy Thursday, 
exactly a year after the declaration of independence, to 
declare that the hand of God had convulsed the land to 
crush the rebels. Their strongholds fell one after the 
other, and at last their leader, Miranda, surrendered the 
ruins of Caracas to its old masters. 

But the dying embers of revolt were rekindled by the 
numerous bands of volunteers, who poured in from the 
Antilles, from the United States and Europe, and at one 
time numbered as many as 9000, chiefly Anglo-Americans 
and English. Nevertheless little progress was made 
until the llaneros, that is, the hardy " cow-boys " of the 
llanos, hitlierto staunch royalists, suddenly took sides 
with the patriots, and by a harassing guerilla warfare 
exhausted the strength of the disciplined Spanish forces. 
At last the decisive battle of Carabobo (1821) put an 
end to Spanish misrule, and the old Captaincy of 
Caracas became for a time 'an integral part of the 
Eepublic of Colombia, which at first comprised the 
three present republics of Colombia, Ecuador, and 
Venezuela. 

The success of the general movement was by common 
consent attributed to the " Liberator," Simon Bolivar, on 
grounds that have since been called in question. In any 
case the united confederacy, proclaimed by him in 1819, 
held together only till the year 1828, when it was dis- 
solved by the Convention of Ocana into three independent 
states, the Republic of Venezuela being constituted out of 



104 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the four departments of Orinoco, Apure, Venezuela, and 
Zulia. 

During the period of absolute self-government Vene- 
zuela lias been the theatre of as many general and partial 
revolutions as perhaps any other Hispano-American 
State. It would be tedious to follow the vicissitudes of 
these fratricidal struggles for power, some of which have 
been carried on with great ferocity, while others have 
entangled the republic in foreign complications, arising 
out of boundary questions or else out of claims for 
compensation for losses inflicted on British, German, 
or French subjects by one or other of the rival 
factions. These political commotions show little sign 
of abatement, and so recently as June 1898 fresh 
fuel was added to the flames by the assassination of 
ex-President Crespo. 

Topography — Chief Towns 

As modern states are constituted, a safe indication of 
their economic condition may in most cases be had from 
the proportion of the urban to the rural population, and 
generally from the growth of the towns and especially of 
the chief centres of trade and the industries. Judged by 
this test, Venezuela must take rank with the most back- 
ward countries in the world. In the subjoined table of 
the sixteen largest places in the republic it will be seen 
that the population of ten only exceeds 10,000, and of 
one only 50,000, while the collective population of all 
falls below 300,000 as compared with the 2,323,000 of 
the whole country. In other words, A^enezuela is still 
mainly inhabited by scattered rural communities and 
nomad tribes, with scarcely any large industrial or com- 
mercial centres : — 



106 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Caracas 


. 72,000 


Puerto Cabello 


. 11,000 


Valencia . 


. 38,000 


Ciudad Bolivar 


. 11,000 


Maracaibo . 


. 34,000 


Tocuyo 


. 10,000 


liarquisiineto 


. 31,000 


Maturin 


. 10,000 


IJarcelona . 


. 13,000 


Maracai 


7,500 


La Guaiia . 


. 12,000 


Cumaria 


. 6,500 


Ciudad de Cura . 


. 12,000 


Merida 


. 5,000 


Gnanare 


. 11,000 


Victoria 


5,000 



Caracas, the capital of the repuljlic, was founded by 
Diego Losada in 1567 on the southern slope of the Silla 
range, at an altitude of about 3000 feet above the sea. 
It was captured and sacked by Drake in 1595, and since 
then has suffered greatly from disastrous earthquakes, and 
still more disastrous sieges during the Civil wars. Yet 
it has always risen from its ruins, and is now by far 
the largest city, as well as the chief centre of intellectual 
life in the State. Besides a national library of 32,000 
volumes, and a museum, there is a university, which since 
the suppression of the ecclesiastical seminaries in 1872 
has chairs both of divinity and the natural sciences. From 
its port of La Guaira Caracas is distant only two miles in 
a straight line ; but so steep are the slopes on both sides 
that the railway, which since IS S3 has superseded the 
old track over the crest of the Silla range, has a total 
length of no less than 23 miles. At La Guaira, where 
the normal temperature of about 82° Fahr. is rendered 
almost unbearable by the moist atmosphere and sultry 
nights, there is no natural haven of any kind. In 1821 
nearly all the shipping was dashed to pieces on the 
encircling rocks by a violent tempest ; but since then a 
pier and a few other harbour-works afford a little shelter 
to the vessels that here ship the coffees of the Aragua 
valley in exchange for European wares. 

Valencia, at the west end of the lake to which it gives 
its name, is even an older place, and occupies a more 



VENEZUELA 



10' 



central position than Caracas. After the secession from 
Colombia it was for a time the seat of Government, and 
is still the most flonrishing agricultural centre in the 
republic. The northern route to the spacious natural 
harbour of Puerto Cahcllo passes down the Ar/ua Calicnte 
(" Hot Water ") valley, which takes its name i'rom the 
Tr inch eras thermal streams, which are amongst the hottest 




LA GUAIRA. 



in the world, varying with the seasons from 196'' to 206° 
Fahr. Soutliwards Valencia communicates through the 
prosperous rural towns of Giudad de Cura, Maracai, and 
Turmcro, with the finest pastoral districts of the upper 
llanos. 

But west of Valencia the populations still continue to 
avoid tlie plains, so that all the chief towns lie either on 
the inland or the coast ranges, or else on the neighbourino; 



108 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

seaboard. Such are Merida, in the heart of the Sierra of 
like name, at an altitude of 5450 feet, which has converted 
its old ecclesiastical seminary into a not very flourishing 
university ; Trujillo and Barquisimeto, still in the uplands ; 
Tiicacas, Tocuyo, Coro, and Maracaibo on the coast. The 
little haven of Tucacas near Tocuyo owes its prosperity 
to the railway, 60 miles long, which connects it with the 
copper-mines of the Aroa district. It is proposed to 
continue this line to San FeliiJe, Barquisimeto, and the 
other inland towns in this mineral region, and also along 
the coast to the historical but now decayed town of Coro 
at the neck of the sandy Paraguana Peninsula. Coro, 
founded in 1527, was the starting-point of the famous 
expedition under the German Captains Fredemann, 
Alfinger, and others, which led to the discovery of the 
Colombian plateau, the Eio Magdalena, the llanos, and 
the Orinoco. Por some time it was the capital of 
Venezuela, but after its capture by the English in 1567 
the seat of Government was removed to Caracas. Mara- 
caibo, formerly Nueva Zamora, was founded in 1571 on 
the west side of the channel connecting the outer and 
inner Maracaibo basins. It thus commands the natural 
outlet of the vast region comprised between the Colombian 
plateau and the Sierra de Merida, hence must always 
remain the chief forwarding station for the coffee, cacao, 
cattle, hides, minerals, and other produce of the surround- 
ing slopes. In the vicinity are the lacustrine dwellings 
of Santa Rosa, which exactly resemble those sighted by 
the first explorers, from which the whole country took 
the name of Venezuela. 

Few other places call for mention except the little 
seaports of. Barcelona and C'umana on the coast east of 
La Guaira, and Ciudad Bolivar, which, although situated 
on the (!)rinoco in the heart of the llanos, must also be 



VENEZUELA 109 

regarded as a seaport. At present it is the only important 
commercial centre in this vast basin ; yet even including 
the thriving suburb of Soledad on the opposite (left) bank 
of the river, the population scarcely exceeds 14,000. 
Amongst the numerous railway projects, which must 
remain projects till the establishment of a stable govern- 
ment, is one to connect the capital across the llanos with 
this station of Soledad. Here the Orinoco contracts at 
the Angostura or " Narrows " to a width of less than half 
a mile, and in mid-stream rises the Piedra del Medio, or 
" Middle Eock," by which, when the time comes, the line 
will easily be carried across the river to Bolivar, and 
thence to the foot of the Parima uplands. 

Until some such scheme of inter -communication is 
carried out, these desolate wilds must remain uninhabited, 
except by a few scattered Carib or Arawak tribes. No 
attempt has yet been made to develop their natural 
resources, so that in the whole region there appears to be 
not a single permanent station or centre of civilised 
population. Yet, judging from the gold-washings in the 
alluvial parts about the Cuyuni and Barima rivers, the 
country probably abounds in rich gold-bearing reefs, as 
well as in iron and other useful minerals. 



Government — Social Condition 

The charter of fundamental laws, which dates from 
1830, and was modified in 1881, is based on the con- 
stitution of the United States, the chief difference being 
a larger measure of self-government conceded to the 
provincial and local administrations. The President, 
who is elected only for two years, is aided by six ministers 
and a Federal Council of nineteen members, the latter 
being appointed by the Congress also for two years. The 



VENEZUELA 111 

Council from their own body elect a President, who is 
ex-officio President of the Ptepublic. He has no veto 
power over the decree of Congress, which consists of the 
Senate (three memljers for each of the eight States and 
for the Federal district) and the House of Piepresentatives 
(one to every 35,000 of tlie population). Both Houses 
are elected for four years, the former by the Legislature 
of each State, the latter by public election. The central 
Government has charge of the territories and colonies, 
and of the general defence, while the several states or 
provinces have each their own legislature and executive, 
with complete control over their own financial and judicial 
afiairs. In fact, the only bond of union is that of the 
national defence, and surprise has often been expressed 
at the violence of the rival factions, when the coveted 
piize — a vetoles's President, holding office for two years — 
seems to be of such little value. But the President is 
often virtually a Dictator, who administers the public funds 
in the interest of himself and his partisans. Perhaps 
under these circumstances they may claim some credit for 
moderation, seeing that the collective foreign and internal 
debt scarcely exceeded £8,000,000 in 1898. In the same 
year the revenue and expenditure were estimated to balance 
at £1,612,000. The chief source of revenue is the Customs 
(over £1,000,000), and the chief items of expenditure 
the administration (Civil Service), and the interest on the 
debt. The charge for defences is slight, the standing army 
comprising only about 4000 men, and the navy compris- 
ing only three steamers and two sailing-vessels. 

The sum yearly expended on elementary education 
averages about £100,000 since 1870, when pubhc 
instruction was made free and compulsory. In 1898 
the attendance at the Federal and State free schools 
exceeded 100,000. For higher education provision is 



112 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 



made by two universities (Caracas and Merida), 22 Federal 
colleges, 26 private colleges, 11 national colleges for girls, 
and a few technical schools, with a total attendance of 
nearly 5000, and a public expenditure of £35,000. 

Although the ecclesiastical establishments have been 
suppressed or secularised, the Iioman Catholic remains 
the State religion. Toleration is extended to other 
denominations, which, however, are forbidden public pro- 




THE CAPITOL, CARACAS. 

cessions and all other outward display. In 1897 about 
400 miles of railway had been completed, and in the 
same year the total exports exceeded £4,400,000, of 
which £60,000 were taken by Great Britain in exchange 
for £790,000 of British produce. Thus the exchanges 
at present are largely in favour of the United Kingdom, 
which also enjoys most of the profits of the carrying- 
trade, not only on the high seas but also in the naviga- 
tion of the Orinoco, which has mainly been developed Ijy 
British enterprise. 



UELA 



65° 



ISLANDS 

Spanuird.il 

C A RI 



^... 



•s:^(!nlul/,. 



\B J 



C.Codera 

Tjj-itit 




V 



VENEZUELA 




RnijA/rwf3 shtnrn. thus 



CHAPTER V 

COLOMBIA 

Boundaries — Frontier Questions — Extent, Areas, and Populations — 
Physical Features — The Colombian Andes — The Eastern Cordillera — 
The Central Cordillera — The Western Cordillera — The Sierra Nevada 
de Santa Marta — H3'drography — The iMagdalena-Cauca Basin — The 
Magdalena — The Cauca — The Siuu, Atrato, San Juan, and Patia 
Rivers — Lacustrine Basins : Lakes Fuquene and Guatavita — Climate 
— Flora — Fauna — Inhabitants — The Cultured Peoples — The Chibchas 
— Primitive Mining Process — • The Wild Tribes — The Goajiros 
— Topography — Chief Towns of Colombia — The Discovery — Conquest 
and Settlement — Colonial Administration — The Revolution — Present 
Regime — Religion — Education — Natural Resources — Mineral 
Wealth. 

Boundaries — Extent, Areas, and Populations 

The " Eepublic of Colombia," which siuce 1885 is the 
official title of this State, occupies about half a million 
square miles of territory in the north-west corner of the 
southern continent, together with the isthmus of Panama 
in Central America. Apart from this outlying depend- 
ency, which is dealt with elsewhere, Colombia stretches 
from a little north of the equator to the Atlantic, pre- 
senting a coast -line of about 1300 miles both to the 
Pacific and to the Caribbean Sea. Landwards it is con- 
terminous on the east with Venezuela, on the south-east 
for a short distance with Brazil and Peru, and on the 
south with Ecuador. Here also the frontiers may be 
estimated at nearly 1300 miles, although they have been 
VOL. I. I 



114 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



definitely settled only towards Venezuela. The tracts 
contested with the other border States involve some very 
extensive districts watered by the western affluents of 
the Amazon. But they are at present of such slight 
economic value, being for the most part little -known 
wildernesses roamed by a few nomad wild tribes, that 
none of the litigants seem eager for a final settlement. 

Two continuous and parallel zones are chiefly affected, 
one roughly comprised between the Eios Napo and 
Putumayo, the other lying between the Piedra del Cocu}' 
and Tabatinga on the Amazon. Here the line running 
north and south, as laid down by Biazil, overlaps that 
claimed by Colombia by about 180 miles. Ecuador 
draws its eastern boundary in such a way as to include 
the middle course of the Putumayo, and even a strip 
beyond that river, while Peru wishes to secure the lower 
course of the same river. The whole question was 
referred in 1894 to Spain, whose decision is still pending. 
But whatever that decision may be, the Colombian 
Kepublic must still possess a vast domain of probably 
over 500,000 square miles, considerably more densely 
inhabited than A^enezuela, with a population estimated 
at about 4,000,000, and distributed over the nine de- 
partments of the State as under : — 



Departments. 


Area in sq. miles. 


Population, 
(est. 189G.) 


Antioquia 


22,316 


500,000 


Bolivar 


21,345 


280,000 


Boyaca 


3.3,351 


720,000 


Canca . 


257,462 


650,000 


Cunilinamarca 


79,810 


600,000 


Magdalena 


24,440 


100,000 


Santandei- 


16,409 


560,000 


Tolima 


18,069 


306,000 




473,202 


3,716,000 


Panama 


31,571 
1 . . 504,773 


285,000 


Tota 


4,001,000 



COLOMBIA 115 

No regular census has been taken since 1870, when 
the population was returned at 2,951,000, while an 
official estimate for 1881 gave 3,878,000. Hence, if 
the estimate for 1896 is approximately correct, there 
has been an increase of about 34 per cent during the 
last three decades, despite the usual political disorders, 
the insalubrity of the low-lying tracts and the absence 
of immigrants. Thus the increase is almost exclusively 
due to the excess of births over the mortality, an excess 
at present estimated at from 60,000 to 70,000 yearly. 
On the other hand, the uncivilised aborigines appear to 
be rapidly disappearing, having fallen from 220,000 in 
1881 to 150,000 in 1896, if the calculations are correct. 
Besides these wild tribes there are about 200,000 more 
or less civilised and settled full-blood Indians, who are 
distinguished from the general population chiefly by their 
speech. Since the emancipation of the slaves, the 
Sambos, as all with a strain of black blood are here 
called, have decreased everywhere except on the coast- 
lands where they enjoy a certain immunity from ma- 
larious affections. 

All the rest of the inhabitants, that is nine-tenths of 
the whole, are returned as " whites," although they are 
for the most part undoubtedly a cross between the 
aborigines and Spaniards from Andalusia, Catalonia, the 
Basque Provinces, and other parts of the Peninsula. 
All are of Spanish speech, and enjoy absolute social 
equality with the few whites who have here and there 
preserved their racial purity. As in Venezuela, all 
the settled communities are concentrated mainly on 
the elevated plateaux, avoiding both the hot eastern 
slopes facing the Amazonian plains and the low-lying 
malarious districts about the Lower Magdalena and 
Atrato rivers. 



116 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

Physical Features — The Colombian Andes 

Although the Andean system is continued without 
any break from Ecuador into Colombia, the northern 
section differs in one important respect from all other 
parts of the Cordillera. Elsewhere the ramifications 
enclose elevated plateaux which are usually traversed 
by cross ridges connecting the outer ramparts. But in 
Colombia the plateaux, with one or two exceptions, are 
replaced by deep river valleys disposed longitudinally, 
that is, parallel with the ramifying ranges. Thus it 
happens that, while many of the great rivers of Ecuador 
and Peru, for instance, have their sources on the eastern 
escarpments and drain east to the Amazon, several of 
those farther north flow in long depressions between the 
Andean ranges, and find independent outlets in the 
Caribbean Sea. 

The Eastern Cordillera 

Immediately north of the equator, where it enters 
Colombian territory, the Andean system spreads out like 
the ribs of a fan into three distinct ranges, which are 
sharply defined by the two fluvial valleys of the rivers 
Magdalena and Cauca. The Eastern Cordillera, which 
is by far the longest, comprises four more or less distinct 
sections — Miraflores, Summa Paz, Cocui, and Negra 
(Ferijaa), — which vary considerably in altitude, but have 
a general north-easterly tread. Beginning in a low ridge 
about 6000 feet high about the sources of the Putumayo 
and Yapura affluents of the Amazon, the Miraflores chain, 
so named from its highest peak (9200 feet), runs with a 
gradual rise nearly due north to the Sierra de Summa Paz, 
the " Mountains of Highest Peace," skirting the Cundi- 
namarca plateau at a mean elevation of 11,000 feet, and 



COLOMBIA 117 

in the Nevada (14,146 feet) penetrating into the region 
of eternal snows. Viewed from Bogata the Nevado 
seems, when bathed in the rays of the setting sun, like 
another Olympus, the serene abode of the immortals, and 
to this circumstance it owes its title of Summa Paz, 
which is often extended to the whole Eastern Cordillera. 

Beyond the Pan de Azucar (the "Sugar-loaf," 12,140 
feet) a transverse ridge is projected along the north side 
of the old lacustrine depression of Bogota, where the 
whole space limited westwards by the Magdalena valley 
presents the aspect of an exceedingly rugged mountain 
mass carved by the running waters into a confused group 
of heights and crests, and merging northwards in the 
more regular Sierra Nevada de Cocui. 

Here the Eastern Cordillera attains its greatest eleva- 
tion in several domes from 16,000 to 16,700 feet higli. 
Beyond the Tama (13,126) and Cachiri (13,780) peaks, 
near the sources of the Apure affluent of the Orinoco, the 
Sierra de Cocui bifurcates round the Maracaibo basin, the 
eastern branch bending round to join the Venezuelan 
Sierra de Merida, while the western, that is, the Sierra 
de Perijaa or Sierra Negra, runs at a lower elevation due 
north to the neck of the Goajira Peninsula. At first 
this northern section rises considerably above 10,000 
feet in several crests, such as the Rorqueta (10,768 feet) 
and the Cerro Mina and Cerro Pintado, both 11,000 feet. 
But farther on the range falls to below 6000 feet, and 
is crossed by passes 4000 and 3000 feet high, affording 
easy communication between the Lower Magdalena and 
the Maracaibo basin. In the Motilones district one peak 
rises above 8000 feet, while another, Cerro Pintado, a con- 
spicuous mass of white limestone diversified with bands of 
light and dark green vegetation, rises near the extremity 
of the Sierra Negra to an estimated height of 11,800 feet. 



118 COMPEXUIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

The Central Cordillera 

West of the Eastern follow the Central and the 
Western Cordilleras, the former presenting an un- 
broken rampart of Alpine aspect between the Magdalen a 
and Cauca valley, the latter separating the Cauca from 
the Pacific drainage area. The Central, or QvAndio 
Cordillera, as it is often called, from the famous historical 
pass near the middle of the system, differs from the two 
lateral ramifications both in its greater altitude and its 
more rugged highland features, as well as in its almost 
exclusively volcanic character as far north as the 
Antioquia plateau. 

Close to the Ecuador frontier rise the three cones of 
Azufrcd (13,360 feet), Cumlal (15,720), and Chiles 
(15,680), which, however, seem to belong rather to the 
Western than to the Central Cordillera. In fact, the 
main axes of all three systems cannot here be very 
clearly distinguished, as they all converge a little farther 
north in the Pasto knot, where are grouped three other 
volcanoes, the Bordoncillo (Fatascoi), the Camjpanero 
(12,470 feet), and the Pasto (14,000), which gives its 
name to this remarkable Alpine entanglement, and is 
perhaps the most active volcano in Colombia. It often 
ejects red-hot stones to a great height, and from its huge 
crater flows a copious stream charged with sulphuric 
acid. In the neighbouring little Cocha tarn the Putu- 
mayo has its farthest western source. 

A little farther north the Central Cordillera broadens 
out in the Buey plateau, where is the so-called " Massif 
of Colombia," true hydrographic centre of the whole 
region. Here four important streams, rising in close 
proximity, diverge to three different basins — the Patia 
direct to the Pacific, the Caqueta through the Amazon to 



COLOMBIA 119 

the Atlantic, the Magdaleua and Cauca to the Caribbean. 
On the ridge separating the Patia from the Cauca stands 
the extinct Sotara cone (14,500 feet). 

At the north-west extremity of the Cocomtcos chain, 
with its live snowy peaks, rises the still restless Purac6, 
which, after the explosion of 1849 was reduced to a 
truncated cone about 16,000 feet high. From its flanks 
the famous Rio Pasambio, " Vinegar Kiver," which is 
highly charged with sulphuric and other acids, tumbles 
over a romantic waterfall 260 feet high. North of the 
Gucmacas Pass (11,000 feet), which affords access from 
the Upper Cauca to the Upper Magdalena valley, the 
triple-peaked Huila (18,000 feet) still emits sulphurous 
vapours, and although the chain falls beyond Santa 
Catalina (16,170 feet) down to the Central Quindio Pass 
(11,440), it again rises a little farther north in the 
Tolima cone (18,400), — culminatnig point of Colombia, 
unless it is to be deprived of this honour by the snowy 
crest of the Sierra de Santa Marta. Tolima, which 
stands a little east of the main axis, has been quiescent 
since 1826 and 1829, when columns of vapour rose from 
the central crater. But it has developed several parasitic 
cones on its flanks, while solfataras have sprung up on 
the surrounding paramos and as far down as the Quindio 
Pass. 

Farther north follow Santa Isabel (16,760), with 
thermal springs at a temperature of 148° Fahr. and the 
huge mass of the snowy Ruiz (17,390), not yet quite ex- 
tinct, beyond which the igneous system proper terminates 
in the Alto Pcreiro, surmounted by the imposing Mesa 
Nevada de Herveo (18,340). From the transverse ridge 
of -San Miguel (9025) three short branches diverge 
northwards in the direction of the Antioquia plateau, 
where the main axis is dominated in the Santa Rosa de 



120 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

los Osos ridge (" Bear Mountains ") by the San Jose peak 
(9000), and farther north by the twin-crested Yarumal 
(7470 and 7230). The escarpment:? of the Antioquia 
plateau here fall rapidly down to the low-lying alluvial 
plains watered by the converging currents of the Eios 
Cauca and Magdalena. 



The Western Cordillera 

North of the Pasto knot the Choco Bange — as the 
Western Cordillera is often called from the Choco 
aborigines formerly occupying its slopes — runs for some 
distance nearly due north, and so close to the left bank 
of the Eio Cauca that in its upper course this river seems 
to flow in a trench of enormous depth between rocky 
escarpments several thousand feet high. Here the Choco 
system already attains its greatest elevation in the gold- 
bearing Cerro Torra (12,600 feet), which was scaled in 
1878 by Mr. R B. White. Farther on the Farimo de 
Frontino Citara stands at a mean altitude of a little over 
11,000 feet, and the same elevation is maintained by the 
Faramillo, where the various ramifying ridges of the 
Cordillera diverge northwards between the Cauca and 
the Upper Leon valleys. In the northern section the 
San Jeronimo chain, prolonged north-eastwards by the 
Murmucu group, falls below 5000 feet. But the ridge 
running in the same direction from the Quinamari 
plateau to the Gulf of Uraba rises to 6600 feet in the 
Chigurrado peak at the eastern entrance to that inlet. 
Although the Choco range nowhere develops any igneous 
cones north of the Pasto group, it resembles the other 
ramifications of the Colombian Andes in its general 
geological constitution — a central backbone of crystalline 
rocks underlying extensive cretaceous formations which 



COLOMBIA 121 

were deposited in shallow waters probably in late 
Secondary times. 

The Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta 

To a totally different system belongs the isolated mass 
of the snowy Santa Marta, which, although occupying a 
triangular space of little over 6000 square miles between 
the Magdalena delta and the Goajira Peninsula, rises, 
according to some estimates, to a height of no less than 
19,000 feet. But the measurements of F. A. Simons, 
who in 1875 reached the Parimo de Chirugua (16,000 
feet), and in a second expedition came within 500 feet of 
the summit, were considerably reduced by later estimates, 
which at present oscillate between 17,000 and 18,150 feet 
(Ptitter). This superb mountain mass is almost completely 
separated from the Central Cordillera by the valleys of 
the two rivers Cesar and Eancheria, the former flowing 
north-west to the Magdalena, the latter encircling the 
eastern slopes in its winding course to the Caribbean Sea. 
The view presented by the precipitous northern slopes 
rising abruptly from the marine depths, and, clothed up 
to the snow -line by a vegetation of extraordinary 
splendour and variety, is one of the grandest in the New 
World. Granites and metamorphic rocks with some 
recent lavas appear to be its chief geological constituents. 
Earthquakes have frequently been recorded, and as 
igneous eruptions are said to have occurred in the 
eighteenth century, there is little reason to doubt the 
statement that the Sierra is partly of volcanic origin. 

Hydrography — The Magdalena-Cauca Basin 

From the general lie of the land, as above set forth, 
its drainage system almost explains itself The three 



122 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Cordilleras form, broadly speaking, three divides, — the 
eastern, between the Atlantic and the Magdalena ; the 
western, between the Pacific and the Cauca slopes ; and 
the Central, between the Magdalena and the Cauca valleys. 
Again, the streams flowing to the Atlantic either through 
the Orinoco or the Amazon are, with two or three excep- 
tions, comprised only in their upper courses within the 
Colombian frontiers, and belong rather to the neighbouring 
States of Venezuela and Ecuador, where they are described. 
On the other hand, the Pacific slope is too narrow to 
allow room for large fluvial valleys, so that only two 
rivers worthy of note — the Patia and the San Juan — 
find their way to this basin. There remain the Atrato, 
almost a frontier river, flowing to the Caribbean in an 
old marine channel, and the two great central arteries — 
the Magdalena and the Cauca — through which the 
greater part of the drainage of the three Cordilleras, 
that is of Colombia proper, is conveyed also to the 
Caribbean. Even these converge in their lower courses, 
entering the sea through a common delta, so that, strictly 
speaking, they form but one hydrographic system. 

The Magdalena 

But no adequate impression of the extent of this 
system is conveyed by the small-scale maps of Colombia, 
which are alone accessible to the general public. Hence 
most readers will perhaps learn with a feeling almost 
akin to incredulity that the Magdalena, that is, the larger 
eastern branch, is the fourth largest river in South 
America, being surpassed in length and volume only by 
the Plate, Amazon, and Orinoco, that it is over 1000 
miles long, and is navigable at high water throughout its 
lower and upper courses for 830 miles, with a single 



124 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

break of about 20 miles, and is joined by over 500 
affluents from the Cordilleras, while the drainage area of 
both branches is estimated at about 100,000 square 
miles, that is, 8000 square miles more than the total 
area of England, Scotland, and Wales. 

Yet for many miles in its upper reaches the Magda- 
lena has the aspect rather of a mountain torrent, rushing, 
like the Cauca, down a steep incline between the high 
rocky walls of the Central and Eastern Cordilleras. 
Eising about 2° K lat. in the Buey lakelet, which gives 
its name to the surrounding plateau, it takes a course 
north by east parallel with the two Sierras to the con- 
fluence of the Neiva, which marks the head of the upper 
navigation about 170 miles from its source. Thanks to 
the numerous contributions tumbling down from the 
encircling hills, the current here becomes broader, deeper, 
and more tranquil till it approaches the important station 
of Honda, where are developed a series of rapids about 
20 miles long between Arrancaplumas and Yeguas. At 
this point, 603 miles above Barranquilla in the delta, the 
lower navigation is completely arrested, and the portage 
thus formed is now turned by a short railway, which 
belongs to an English company, and which it is proposed 
to continue to Conejo, 12 miles below the rapids. The 
lower course, which presents a clear navigable waterway 
of over 600 miles uninterrupted by any obstruction, is 
at present utilised by as many as forty steamers, all 
stern- wheelers, and with capacities ranging up to 300 
tons. 

Lower down the Magdalena is joined, chiefly on its 
right bank, by several large affluents, which are useless 
for navigation and noted especially for their wild romantic 
scenery. Such are the Funza, which a short distance 
below the Bogota plateau develops the magnificent 



COLOMBIA 125 

Tequenclama Falls, 475 feet high, with a volume of o^^er 
4000 cubic feet per second; the Rio Narc, which joins 
the left bank at the Nare gorge, where the main stream 
is 100 feet deep, with a discharge of 180,000 cubic feet 
per second during the Hoods ; the Sogamoso, largest of all 
the affluents on the right bank, which is formed by the 
junction of the ChicaviocJia and Saravita, the latter fall- 
ing in a narrow gorge 800 yards in the space of 3 miles, 
and then disappearing in an underground channel for a 
distance of over 200 yards. 



The Cauca 

After leaving its roclcy bed in the Cordilleras, the 
Magdalena winds in a somewhat sluggish and ramifying 
course over the marshy and malarious plains below 
Antioquia to Tacaloa, where it is joined by the Cauca 
about 200 miles above the delta. At the confluence the 
Cauca has a discharge of nearly 78,000 cubic feet per 
second, and seems scarcely inferior in volume to the 
Magdalena. The length of its course to this point is 
also about the same ; but it flows in a narrower and 
more precipitous channel, which is fed by fewer tributaries, 
and is navigable only for some miles in the higher 
reaches. Hence the united stream rightly retains the 
name of the Magdalena for the rest of its course through 
the lowlands to the relatively small delta which is 
developed a little to the west of the Sierra de Santa 
Malta. This delta, which is known as the island de los 
Gomez, has a seaward frontage of about 1 2 miles between 
the two chief branches, the Boca, de, Rio Viejo and the 
Boca de Caniza. This branch, which lies to the west, is 
the main mouth, but in order fully to develop the river 
trafflc a safe passage for sea-going vessels requires to be 



126 COMrENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

opened from Savanilla by this channel to BarraiKiuilla, 
where begins the fluvial navigation proper. Pending the 
necessary improvements, the Boca de Caniza route, 
formerly utilised for the cattle trade with Cuba, has l^een 
abandoned in favour of the railway now opened from 
Barranquilla to Savanilla on the coast. When the 
shifting bar is deepened, vessels drawing 24 feet will be 
able to ascend the Lower Magdalena to its junction with 
the Cauca. 



The Sinu, Atrato, San Juan, and Patia Rivers 

The low-lying district between Savanilla and the Gulf 
of Uraba is traversed by the Sinu, a sluggish stream 
which rises in the Paramillo heights, reaches the coast 
at the Morosquillo inlet, and is accessible to small craft 
for over 100 miles at high water. Farther on the 
spacious Gulf of Darien is entered through a large delta by 
the Atrato, which rises near the source of the San Juan 
at the low sill here forming the divide between the 
Atlantic and Pacific basins. Owing to the heavy rain- 
fall, fed by the vapours from the two contiguous oceans, 
the Atrato receives a large number of short tributaries 
from the surrounding uplands, and, after a course of 
about 400 miles, discharges into the lower part of the 
gulf a volume which is estimated, during the fioods, at no 
less than 175,000 cubic feet per second. Such a volume 
is out of all proportion to the extent of its basin, which 
scarcely exceeds 24,000 square miles, and the conse- 
quence is that large quantities of alluvial matter are 
continually deposited throughout its lower course and 
along the west side of the gulf. 

Thus has already been filled in the old marine channel, 
and the large delta with as many as fifteen shilting 



COLOMBIA 127 

mouths is now advancing steadily across the head of tlie 
gulf, so that the time must come when the Cnlata, or 
" Sack," as the southern inlet is called, will be trans- 
formed to a lacustrine basin. Not more than two of the 
mouths are navigable, and even these are obstructed by 
bars, which exclude vessels drawing over 5 or 6 feet. 
But higher up the main stream is from 40 to 60 or even 
70 feet deep, and with a little dredging at the entrance 
would be accessible to the largest vessels for over 100 
miles from the gulf. At present it is utilised only by a 
few boats and steamers of light craft ; yet the Atrato 
valley must become one of the great highways of the 
world's traffic whenever the projected inter- oceanic ship 
canal is constructed. It was already pointed out by 
Fidalgo, over a hundred years ago, that the two navigable 
Eios Atrato and San Juan might be connected by a 
cutting a little more than a mile in length. It has also 
been shown that the divide might easily be pierced at 
the Easpadura gorge, and other more or less feasible 
schemes have been proposed by Trautwine, Porter, 
Selfridge, and other engineers. 

Selfridge, who has surveyed all the rival plans, sums 
up in favour of the Atrato-Doguado line, which might be 
carried out at a cost of about £11,000,000, and is also 
recommended by its more healthy climate and by the 
possession of natural harbours at both ends. But owing 
to political and other causes, all these projects have been 
rejected for the Panama route, already partly constructed, 
at a prodigious cost, under the auspices of France, and 
that of Nicaragua, which has been taken in hand by the 
United States Government. 

The Ban Juan, which continues the main axis of the 
Atrato to tlie Pacific, is nearly 200 miles long, but with 
its affluents presents a total navigable waterway of about 



128 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TPtAVEL 

oOO miles. Unfortunately it suffers from the same 
drawback as the Atrato, and the bars at the mouths of 
its delta a little north of Buenaventura have nowhere a 
depth of more than 6 or 7 feet. Its discharge, estimated 
at 50,000 cubic feet per second, exceeds that of any 
other fluvial basin on the Pacific slope of the southern 
continent. 

The Patia, which also reaches the coast through an 
obstructed delta, has its sources in the Colombian knot, 
being formed by the junction of the Sotara descending 
from the Sotara volcano and the Guaitara, which flows 
from the Pasto volcano. The Carchi, that is, the upper 
course of the Guaitara, forms for some distance the 
political frontier between Colombia and Ecuador, and 
here it is crossed on the route between Popayan and 
Quito by the Eumichaca arch, which is still popularly 
known as the " Incas' Bridge," although the Incas had no 
hand in its construction. It is a natural curiosity, like 
that which spans a torrent rushing down to the right 
bank of the James Eiver, Virginia, but of smaller size. 
After escaping through the narrow Minama gorge from 
the Choco range, the Patia winds through the marshy 
coastlands to its delta, which, like those of the San Juan 
and Atrato, advances some distance beyond the normal 
shore-line. 



Lacustrine Basins : Lakes Fuquene and Guatavita 

Like those in so many other regions of the Cordillera, 
the old Colombian lacustrine lakes have nearly all been 
drained by the streams flowing either eastwards to the 
Orinoco and Amazon, or northwards to the Caribbean. 
Lake Fuquenf, the largest of those still surviving from a 
former geological epoch, has, even within the memory of 



COLOMBIA 129 

man, been considerably reduced in size. The village of 
Fuquene, from which it is named, formerly stood on its 
banks, but is now 3 miles distant, and travellers in the 
seventeenth century describe it as a large sheet of water 
nearly 30 miles long and 8 wide, whereas at present it 
is only 4 or 5 miles by 3. The lake, which has a mean 
depth of about 24 feet, is traversed by the Saravita 
branch of the Sogamoso affluent of the Magdalena. 

The Cundinamarca plateau was undoubtedly at one 
time a vast lacustrine basin, which has discharged most 
of its contents through the Bogota (Funza) to the Upper 
Magdalena. Nothing now remains except a few little 
flooded depressions, one of which, however. Lake Guata- 
vita, is of some historic interest. In pre-Columbian 
times this lakelet w^as the scene of certain periodical 
ceremonies, which unquestionably gave rise to the myth 
of El Dorado. One of the solemn functions fell to the 
part of a great chief of the Chibchas, who, powdered all 
over with gold-dust, plunged into the pool, and the 
ablution by which he was divested of his glittering garb 
was taken as a proof that the offering thus made of all 
his wealth was accepted by the tutelar deity of the 
Chibcha nation. This was the true " Man of Gold," 
whom, even after his discovery, the treasure -seekers 
continued to go in quest of over half the continent. 

Climate 

Owing to its highly-diversified relief, the disposition 
of the three Cordilleras, narrow pent-up fluvial valleys, 
sloping inland plains, flat marshy coastlands, irregular 
distribution of heat and moisture, Colombia presents a 
greater variety of climates than almost any other region 
of equal extent. So completely is latitude neutralised 
VOL. I K 



130 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

by elevation on the uplands, that, despite their proximity 
to the equator, some of the more favoured plateaux enjoy 
a delightful climate, corresponding, as regards temper- 
ature, somewhat to the spring and autumn of the 
temperate zones. Here the extremes of winter and 
summer are unknown, and the alternating seasons, which 
follow the regular course of the sun, are determined 
rather by the varying degrees of moisture and dryness 
than by those of heat and cold. Thus there are two wet 
seasons {veranos), when the sun is at the zenith, and two 
dry seasons (inviernos), when he approaches the tropics. 

On the Bogota tableland the glass oscillates between 
about 50° and 78° Fahr., while the annual rainfuU rarely 
exceeds 45 inches. The heavy downpours are often 
accompanied by terrific thunder and hail -storms, but 
after their passage leave the atmosphere pure and bright. 
Owing, however, to local causes, clear skies are a raie 
phenomenon on the Pacific slopes of the Western Cordil- 
lera, where the verano may be said to prevail throughout 
the year. Being completely sheltered from the cool 
north-east trade-winds, the Pacific seaboard retains the 
heavy, moisture-laden clouds rolling up from the ocean, 
and is thus exposed to drenching rains at all seasons. 

Another contrast is presented by the sultry inland 
plains sloping from the Eastern Cordillera towards the 
Orinoco and Amazon, where the mean temperature 
seldom falls below 86° Fahr., and in some places, the 
so-called "Colombian hells," rises to 90° or 91°. Even 
more stifling heats prevail in some of the central fluvial 
valleys, where the cool trade -winds are intercepted by 
the ramifying Cordilleras. Here the glass indicates a 
mean of about 88°, often rising as high as 101° in the 
shade. In fact the Magdalena and Cauca valleys are 
nearly ten decrrees hotter tlian the Atlantic coastlands. 



COLOMBIA 131 

which, despite their greater distance from the equator, 
are themselves hotter than the Pacific slope. The 
difference has been attributed to the influence of Hum- 
boldt's cold Pacific current. 

Special conditions prevail on the low-lying Atlantic 
seaboard, which is exposed to the full fury of the trade- 
winds, and although true hurricanes never range quite so 
far south, the Caribbean waters are often churned up by 
the fierce north-easterly gales. The rainfall is excessive 
on all these coastlands, ranging from 100 inches about 
the Santa Marta slopes to perhaps 200 in the Atrato 
valley and on the Pacific slope. This heavy discharge, 
combined with the sweltering heats and the supersaturated 
soil of the flat lowlands, sufficiently accounts for the 
malarious nature of the plains traversed by the ramifying 
branches of the Pio Magdalena. Here cutaneous diseases, 
leprosy, and elephantiasis, are very prevalent, and nearly 
all the inhabitants of certain villages present a repulsive 
sight, with face and body spotted all over, like the jaguars 
of the neighbouring thickets. In the upper valley goitre 
and cretinism are common, so that in no part of the 
world are greater contrasts presented than by the 
salubrious and almost vernal climate of the phiteaux 
and the fever-stricken riverine valleys and lowlands of 
Colombia. . 

Flora 

Like all moist tropical lands, Colombia possesses an 
extremely rich and varied flora, which, however, is of a 
somewhat cosmopolitan character. The relati\'ely few 
indigenous species are associated with numerous forms, 
which have gravitated towards this transitional region 
from the Southern Andes, from Venezuela, and from 
Central America. Although nowhere forming continuous 



132 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

forests, but growing in isolated clumps or intermingled 
with other plants, the palms are amongst the most char- 
acteristic and useful members of the vegetable kingdom. 
Such are the tagua, whose melon-shaped pods contain the 
hard grains known as " vegetable ivory " ; the Carludovica 
pahnata, the ribs of whose fan-shaped leaves supply the 
material of the costly " panama hats " ; the corneto and 
wax-palm, the former with plum-like fruits growing in 
enormous clusters, weighing up to 200 lbs., the latter 
with a straight and slender stem, which yields as mucli 
as 24 lbs. of a waxy substance. In the Central Cor- 
dillera these palms range up to over 10,000 feet, and 
the same altitude is reached by the tree-ferns, also a 
numerous family applied to a variety of purposes. With 
the stems of some placed side by side, like railway 
sleepers, are constructed those empalisados, " palisade 
roads," without which certain marshy districts would be 
impassable. 

Amongst the numerous medicinal plants is the cedron, 
said to be even a better specific against agues than the 
chinchona, of which there are several varieties. Other 
more or less characteristic forms are the racaclia, known 
as the celery of the Andes ; the hefaria, or American 
alpine rose, resembling the rhododendron, and ranging 
up to 11,000 feet; dye-woods like those of Brazil and 
Campeachy ; the magnificent red cedar, and orchids in 
great variety. The finest of these have already been 
nearly extirpated by the collectors, and are also indirectly 
the cause of great havoc amongst the splendid forest 
growths, that give them shelter. Mr. Albert Millican 
tells us that in two months he caused the destruction of 
4000 large trees in order to secure about 10,000 
specimens of the superb Odonto glossum} 

^ Travels and Adventures of an Orch id-Hunter. 



COLOMBIA 133 



Fauna 



Tliere is reason to believe that some of the huge 
extiuct animals — megatheriums, glyptodons, taxodons, 
horses of earlier types, mastodons — which formerly 
abounded in Colombia, survived till comparatively recent 
times, and in any case were almost certainly associated 
with primitive man. Mr. R B. "Wliite records the dis- 
covery of the complete skeleton of a mastodon in the 




paved stone channel of a salt -spring near Concordia, 
where it had evidently been overwhelmed by an enormous 
landslip. He also refers to the necklaces from Indian 
graves made of the molar-fangs of mastodons, so well 
preserved that they could scarcely have been the fossil 
teeth of long-extinct animals dug up by the natives.^ 

Of the living fauna both the mammals and most of 
the birds belong, like the plants, to the same genera or 
species as those inhabiting the surrounding lands. Such 

^ "Notes on the Aboriginal Races of the North-West Provinces of 
South America," in Jour. Anthrop. Soc. (1884), p. 244. 



134 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHV AND TRAVEL 

are the puma, jaguar, sloth, ant-eater, tapir, peccary, apes, 
king vulture, eagles, toucans, and humming-birds. Of 
the last-mentioned lovely little creatures Mr. Simons 
discovered as many as five distinct species on the Santa 
Marta heights, and these uplands are also noted for the 
prodigious multitudes of gorgeous butterflies which hover, 
like iridescent clouds, above their seaward slopes. A 
remarkable feature of animal life in these regions is the 
curious habit of some species to confine themselves to 
certain limited areas, beyond which they never range. 
Thus no venomous snake is met on the slopes of the 
Cordilleras above the altitude of 6000 feet, while in 
some districts the swarms of mosquitoes are abruptly 
arrested at a given line without any apparent reason. 

Inhabitants 

From the extensive surveys carried on for many years, 
especially in the old gold-mining provinces, it is evident 
that before the Conquest a certain measure of culture 
was far more widely diffused amongst the Colombian 
populations than has hitherto been supposed. But the 
Chibchas alone had developed powerful political states, 
and to this circumstance may be attributed the oblivion 
into which other smaller but no less civilised groups 
have fallen. Such were the Coconucos^ and others of tlie 
Popayan district towards the Ecuador frontier, who had 
made some progress in the arts under Peruvian influences, 
as shown by the numerous Quichua terms in their 
language. Such were also the civilised Guanos of the 
Sogamoso valley, and especially the Nutahi and Tahami 
nations of the present department of Antioquia, who 
had in some respects surpassed the Chibchas themselves. 

* Illustrated on p. 173. 



COLOMBIA 135 

The Cultured Peoples — The Chibchas 

Of the Chibchas the proper national name appears to 
nave been Muysca, literally " body-five," that is " man," 
in reference to the ten fingers and toes of the extremities 
used in counting up to twenty. Hence in their vigesimal 
system Muysca came also to mean twenty, that is, all the 
fingers and toes of the human body. This circumstance 
alone shows that they had made some intellectual pro- 
gress beyond most of their neighbours, whose arithmetic 
was limited to five, or even two. Although not so far 
advanced as the Quichuas, they deservedly rank amongst 
the cultured peoples of the New World. They con- 
structed paved highways, threw light but durable sus- 
pension-bridges across the river gorges, erected stone 
shrines to the gods, carved their effigies also in stone, 
were skilled weavers, potters, and dyers, made use of 
weights and measures, and were even credited with a 
currency in the form of gold discs. In any case they 
excelled in the working of the precious metal, which was 
both cast and wrought into all kinds of fantastic orna- 
ments, dis})laying nuich imagination in the designs and 
technical skill in the execution. The Chibcha territory 
comprised not only the Cundinamarca plateau between 
the Magdalena and the Suma Paz range, but also the 
uplands of the Eastern Cordillera as far as the Sierra de 
]\Ierida. But this extensive domain was divided between 
two rival chiefs, the Zvpa and the Zaqiie, i.e. rulers of 
the " south " and " north," who were seldom at peace, 
and were lioth at last overwhelmed by the Conquistadores 
while engaged in an exceptionally fierce struggle for the 
supremacy over Muyscaland. The Chibcha language is 
said to be extinct, and the Chibcha people, who numbered 
over a million before their reduction, have long l^een 




ilUXSCAS. 



COLOMBIA 137 

merged in the common Hispano-American nationality of 
Colombia. 

Throughout the whole of the cultural zone are scattered 
great numbers of hitacas (guacas) or sepulchral mounds, 
some of which are over 40 feet high, and often contain 
great stores of gold and precious stones. These abound 
especially in the auriferous Antioquia districts, where the 
huaqueros, as the plunderers of the huacas are called, 
have occasionally extracted treasure to the value of 
several thousand pounds sterling from a single grave. 
One opened about 1830 yielded £3600 worth of gems, 
and Mr. White had personal knowledge of three burrows 
"containing gold ornaments to the amount of £4000, 
£8000, and £13,000 respectively."^ 

Primitive Mining Process 

In this part of the country the auriferous quartz-reefs 
had already been tapped by the natives in pre-Columbian 
times. But the process everywhere adopted by them 
was peculiar, and might be described as a method devised 
to yield the least returns for the greatest expenditure of 
labour. Shafts were sunk, some to a depth of 160 or 
180 feet, down to the lodes, but no side galleries were 
ever opened, so that when the lode where struck was 
exhausted, or proved barren, another shaft was sunk a 
few yards off, and so on. In the northern districts of 
Antioquia the workings were very extensive, and thou- 
sands of hands must have been employed upon them. 
They were continued for some time after the arrival of 
the whites in a more intelligent way, and Mr. E. J. 
Chibas tells us that these early Spanish mines have lately 
been re-discovered, and are now being worked afresh with 

^ loc. cit. p. 247. 



138 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

good prospects.^ All the implements used by the natives 
for mining and all other purposes were of stone, except 
in the Popayan district, where considerable quantities of 
obsidian knives and other tools have been found. These 
were supposed to have been imported from Guatemala, 
and thus to prove regular intercourse with Central 
America, until the obsidian was traced to the neighbouring 
Purace volcano by Dr. Stlibel and Mr. White. 

The Wild Tribes— The Goajiros 

Elsewhere in Colombia the passage from the cultural 
to the cultureless zone was as abrupt as in other parts ol' 
South America. The Faezes, the Chocos with the kindred 
Baudos, Tados, and Noanamas, the Catios, Cunas, and 
others of the uplands, the Pacific and Caribbean coastlands, 
as well as the Mitues, Bctoyes, Uitotos, Carizoncs, Miranhas, 
Orejones, Piajes, and Encabellados of the inland plains, 
were and mostly still are in a state of nature. Many 
were undoubtedly cannibals who, like the African Mang- 
battus, "fattened their captives for the table," and the 
habits of some were so repulsive that the Spaniards con- 
sidered themselves justified in ruthlessly exterminathig 
them. Even the impartial Cieza de Leon, who often 
denounces his fellow - countrymen for their atrocious 
treatment of the natives, speaks with approval of the 
barbarous way the savages of the Aburro valley were 
disposed of. " The detestation we conceived for these 
Indians was such that we hung them and their women 
by their hair to the boughs of trees, and left their bodies 
there, while amidst grievous moans their souls went down 
to hell." Wholesale butcheries undoubtedly took place, 
while hundreds of thousands were enslaved and "used 

1 The Engineering Magazine, Oct. 1898. 



COLOMl'.IA 



139 



up " in tlie service of their new masters, with the result 
that the whole population, estimated by some at about 
8,000,000 (probal)ly :!,000,000 in thJ thickly peopled 
departments of Canca and Antioquia alone), fell soon 
after the Conc[uest 
to less than one 
million. Many were 
too paralysed to 
offer any resistance, 
and many more 
threw themselves 
over the cliffs, thus 
perishing voluntar- 
ily rather than fall 
into the hands of 
the invaders. But 
some retaliated, and 
in the Antioquia 
district poisoned the 
salt - springs so 
effectually that they 
remain poisoned to 
this day. The 
springs were covered 
with the branches 
of the doiicel, a kind 
of " upas tree 

^ r.OA.TIRO.S. 

different from the 

lietter known manzanillo, and the water percolating 
through became so excessively poisonous " that after a 
lapse of 300 years this vegetable matter still retains its 
venomous properties . . . and I have seen three horses 
killed in one night from drinking at one of these poisoned 
springs" (White, p. 251). It may be added that when 




140 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TJiAVEL 

preparing a deadly virus from the blood of a species of 
frog, some of the wild tribes were in the habit of trying 
its efficacy on their old women. 

From the charge of cannibalism and of other de- 
grading practices should be exempted the Goajiros, who 
gave their name to the peninsula, where they have 
hitherto maintained their political independence, and 
still preserve the same tribal and social institutions as 
at the time of the discovery. They engage chiefly in 
turtle-fishing and horse-breeding, and avoid all contact 
with the outer world, except at the frontier station of 
Rio Hacha, where they come to exchange the products 
of the country for manufactured goods. The neighbouring 
Aruacos of the Santa Marta heights appear to be also 
somewhat in advance of the wild tribes, for they till the 
land and raise crops of sugar, bananas, potatoes, and coca. 

The present Colombian nationality results from a 
fusion in varying proportions of aborigines, especially the 
Chibchas, Popayans, and Antioquians, with the whites 
from various parts of Spain, including a considerable 
number of baptized Jews. This Semitic element appears 
to be still conspicuous, especially in the department of 
Antioquia, which has always been noted for the thrift 
and industry of its inhabitants. Unity is imparted to 
all the settled populations by the exclusive use of the 
Spanish language, and by a common administration which 
in recent years has shown a remarkal)le tendency towards 
centralisation. 

Topography 

This centralising tendency is seen even in the dis- 
tribution of the population, which is concentrated in 
large urban centres to a much greater extent, both 
relatively and absolutely, than in the neighbouring States 



COLOMBIA 



141 



of Venezuela and Ecuador. From the subjoined table it 
will be seen that, besides the capital, there are several 
places with over 20,000 inhabitants, while those ex- 
ceeding 5000 may be numbered by the score : — 



Santa F6 cle Bogota 

Medellin . 

Barranquilla 

Socorro 

Cartagena . 

Bucaramanga 

Chiquinquira 

Soata 

Puente Nacional 

Call . 

Palmira 

Neiva 

Velez 

Sogamoso . 

Maiiizales . 

La Mesa . 

Sonson 

Sanjil 

Cucuta 

Jiron 

Pasto 

Duitaraa . 

Aguadas . 

Rionegro . 



Chief Towns of Colombia 

120,000 
45,000 
40,000 
25,000 
23,000 
22,000 
21,000 
18,000 
16,000 
16,000 
15,000 
15,000 
15,000 
15,000 ^ 
15,000 { 
14,000 j 
14,000 I 
14,000 I 
13,000 I 
13,000 j 
13,000 
13,000 
13,000 
13,000 



Pesca 






13,000 


Paipa 






13,000 


Buga 






13,000 


Ipiales 






13,000 


Ibague 






13,000 


Moiiiquira 






13,000 


Miraflores . 






12,000 


Zipaquira . 






12,000 


Guarno 






12.000 


Popayan . 






10,000 


Aiitioquia 






10,000 


Sabaiialargu 






10,000 


Jenezano . 






10,000 


Pamplona . 






10,000 


Espinal 






10,000 


Fredonia . 






10,000 


Yarumal . 






10,000 


Tunja 






8,000 


Carmen 






8,000 


Santa Marta 






6,000 


Savanilla . 






6,000 


Buenaventura 






6,000 


Honda 






6,000 



Santa F6 de Bogota, or simply Bogotd, capital of the 
State, stands on a ramifying tributary of the Rio Funza, 
about 12 miles south-east of BacatA, the old capital of 
the southern Chibchas, from which it takes its name. 
Before its destruction by the Spaniards Bacata was said 
to contain 20,000 houses, and if so it must have been as 
large a city as its successor now is. The new capital, 
founded by Quesada soon after the Conquest on a 



COLOMBIA 



14:^ 



pleasanter and more salubrious site near the foot of the 
Suraa Paz Eange, 8680 feet above sea-level, has been a 
chief centre of Spanish culture throughout colonial and 
later times. Besides a national university, it possesses a 
valuable library of over 50,000 volumes, an observatory, 
a picture gallery^ and several learned institutions. But 
its prosperity ha? been greatly hampered by the lack of 




MAIN STREET OF BOGOTA : LADIES WEARING MANTILLAS. 

easy communications with the surrounding lands. To 
remedy this defect three railway schemes have been 
taken in hand, one running north to the Sogamoso con- 
lluence, another north-west to the Eio Negro confluence, 
and a third south-west to the Popayan district for 
Ecuador. The first section of this important line is 
already completed as far as Girardot on the Upper Mag- 
dalena. Some distance above this place lies the riverine 



144 



coMPENr)iu:\r of geography and travel 



station of JSleiva, founded in 1540 at the confluence of 
the tributary from which it takes its name, but after its 
destruction by the Indians removed 1 5 miles lower down 
to a point which marks the head of the upper navigation 
for small steamers. 

Honda, at the rapids, where the upper navigation 




MAIN KOAD, HONDA TO BOGOTA. 



begins and the lower stops, was in colonial days the 
central depot for distributing the Euroj^ean merchandise 
forwarded from Carthagena by the ]\Iagdalena for the 
Bogota and I'opayan districts. Since the construction 
of the railway which turns the rapids and has its termini 
at Las Yer/uas and ^Irrancapliima above and l)elow Honda, 



COLOMBIA 145 

this place has lost its importance. Near the source of 
the Sogamoso, which traversed the territory of the 
northern Chibchas, stood their capital, Hunsa, now re- 
placed by Tunja, capital of the department of Boyaca. 
Sogamoso, which gives its name to the river, is also a 
historical place, which perpetuates the memory of the 
Sogamwci, or High Priest of the Chibcha people. He 
resided at Iraca, close by, where was the richest temple 
in all the land, a huge wooden structure covered all over 
with plates of gold, but accidentally destroyed by fire 
during its sack by the Spaniards. The few days that 
the conflagration lasted were extended in the popular 
imagination to several years. 

Iraca, holy city of the Chibchas, has in a sense been 
replaced by Chiquinquira, holy city of the present 
Colombians, which lies in the same fluvial basin a little 
north of Lake Enqueue. Here is one of the most famous 
" Miraculous Virgins " in South America, which is a 
perennial source of wealth to the place, being visited in 
some years by as many as 60,000 devout and generous 
pilgrims. In the same romantic district, south-east of 
Tunja, stands the historical town of Boyaca, also a place 
venerated by all Colombian patriots, for here Bolivar 
gained the decisive victory which secured the independ- 
ence of the country in 1819. Other historical events 
are commemorated by the flourishing city of Socorro, on 
the Eio Suarez, capital of the neighbouring department 
of Santander, and scene of the first revolutionary move- 
ments in 1781. Ocana also, in the same district, will 
always be remembered as the place where was signed the 
Treaty of 1828, which dissolved the transient union of 
the three allies — Colombia, Venezuela, and Ecuador. 
But Ocana has other claims to consideration, for it 
occupies a most convenient and healthy position ;3820 
VOL. I L 



146 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



feet above sea-level about the sources of the Catatumbo, 
which affords direct access to the Maracaibo basin, and a 
natural seaward outlet for the produce of the north- 
eastern departments independent of the insalubrious 
lowlands about the Lower Magdalena and its delta. 

Barranquilla, on the chief navigable branch of the 
delta, is at present the most important centre of the 




GATEWAY OP" CAUTALiENA. 



foreign trade of the country. It is connected, by a 
railway 20 miles long, with the exposed seaport of 
Savanilla, and need fear no rival except Cartagena, which 
lies a little farther west on the only good natural harbour 
in Colombia. In colonial times " Cartagena de las Indias " 
enjoyed a complete monopoly of all commercial inter- 
course with Spain, but was a sealed port for the rest of 
the world, and as if to emphasise this fact, the Central 
Government converted it into a fortress of immense 



COLOMBIA 147 

strength at an outlay of no less than £12,000,000. 
Nevertheless it was nearly ruined during the siege of 
1815, and, having lost its exclusive privileges with the 
fall of the colonial system, has never recovered its former 
prosperity. The harbour, formed by a group of islets, on 
one of which stands the town, is well sheltered, and has 
a depth of 60 feet, but is of difficult access. Santa 
Marta, the only other seaport on the Caribbean Sea, was 
founded by Quesada at the foot of the Sierra to which it 
gives its name in the year 1525, and is consequently the 
oldest Spanish settlement in Colombia. 

On the almost uninhabited Pacific seaboard the only 
outlet for trade is Buenaventura, founded in 1821 on an 
islet in a deep and well-sheltered inlet a little to the 
south of the San Juan estuary. 

In the Cauca basin Popayan, near the source of the 
main stream, about 6000 feet above sea-level, dates from 
the year 1536, when it was founded by some of Belal- 
cazar's people. Although a small place, it claims to be a 
chief centre of modern culture, a sort of " Colombian 
Athens," which, however, suffers from the want of good 
communications, though standing on the old historical 
route to Ecuador. 

Lower down the Cauca valley several considerable 
centres of population have sprung up in the mining and 
agricultural districts along the main stream and some 
of the lateral river valleys. Such are Call, one of the 
pleasantest towns in Colombia, founded in 1536 within 
60 miles of the Pacific at Buenaventura, with which 
seaport it is connected by rail ; Manizales, founded 
in 1848 at the junction of two main routes over 
the Central Cordillera, a thriving centre of the gold and 
stock-breeding industries, and already the chief trading- 
place in South Antioquia; and Mcdellin, present capital 



COLOMBIA 149 

of the department of Antioquia, and second city in the 
repubUc, situated in the rich Aborra valley 4860 feet 
above the sea. Medellin has completely eclipsed the 
much older city of Antioquia, which gives its name to 
the whole region, and dates from the year 1541. Can- 
delaria, as Medellin was at first called, was founded in 
1674, but remained little more than a rural hamlet till 
after the Eevolution, when it increased rapidly with the 
development of mining operations. It is now the chief 
centre of the gold interest, with a local mint, a depart- 
mental university, and several technical schools. 

On the almost uninhabitable lowlands below Antioquia 
there are no towns or groups of population except a few 
little riverine stations, such as MaganquS and Tacaloa, 
which marks the point where the Cauca and Magdalena 
converge in a common channel. 

The Discovery — Conquest and Settlement 

After the first survey of the seaboard, as far as the 
Gulf of Darien, by Bastida and his pilot, Juan de la Cosa, 
in 1496, it was again visited by Columbus in 1498. 
The Pacific coast was traced by Andagoya in 1522, but 
no attempt to penetrate inland was made till 1530, 
when the ferocious Alfinger overran and wasted the 
present departments of Magdalena and Santander. He 
was soon followed by Heredia, Cesar, Vadillo, and Eobledo, 
who discovered the plateaux of Antioquia and the rich 
Cauca valley. Then by an extraordinary coincidence, 
unique in the history of exploration and adventure, the 
Chibcha plateau was simultaneously reached in 1538 by 
three separate expeditions starting independently from 
three opposite points — Quesada's from Santa Marta on 
the coast at the foot of the Sierra, Belalcazar's from 



150 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Quito by the Popayan route, and Fredemann's from Core, 
at the neck of the Paraguana Peninsula in the present 
Venezuela. Arriving thus unexpectedly in the very 
citadel of El Dorado, the leaders were at first disposed 
to fall foul of each other, but more prudent counsels 
prevailing, they decided at last to divide the spoils 
between them. Some idea may be formed of the general 
character of these pioneers from the language of an early 
writer, who describes one of them as a combination of 
quicksilver and lightning. Like the former, he drew to 
himself all the precious metals found in the houses ; like 
the latter, he destroyed the houses themselves. And 
thus began the " settlement " of New Granada, as the 
whole region was first called by Quesada, after his native 
place in Andalusia. 

Colonial Administration 

This settlement brought nothing but the direst 
calamities on the unhappy aborigines, who were handed 
over to encomenderos, who were commissioned to exploit 
land and people on behalf of the Crown and in their 
own interest. These ministers of an ignoble policy 
swept the helpless natives into the mines or on to the 
plantations. They perished in multitudes, while the 
more refractory groups were extirpated root and branch, 
so that nine- tenths of the inhabitants disappeared in a 
few generations. 

Then came the turn of the settlers, who, whether 
full-blood or half-castes, had now to submit to the narrow 
system of monopolies and favouritism inspired by the 
jealous policy of the mother country. The right of 
trading at all became the exclusive privilege of Spaniards, 
who were alone permitted to export the produce of the 



COLOMBIA 151 

land from Carthagena, and import such wares as Spain 
could supply in exchange. This degrading system, de- 
spite of occasional administrative changes, was practi- 
cally maintained down to the period of the Eevolution. 
The Presidency constituted in 1565 became a Vice- 
royalty in 1719, on which in 1740 was conferred the 
title of Nuevo Reino de Granada (New Kingdom of 
Granada). 

The Revolution — Present Regime 

Symptoms of unrest had already made themselves felt 
in 1781, when local revolts w^ere with difficulty repressed 
by slight alleviations of intolerable burdens. But the 
fiames of discontent extinguished in one place broke out 
in another, until the whole land was enveloped in the 
great conflagration which began in 1810, and was not fully 
spent till 1819 under circumstances already described in 
the previous chapter. The Eepublic of New Granada, as 
constituted by the solution of the Triple Alliance after 
the Treaty of Ocana (1828), adopted in 1861 a federal 
constitution under the title of United States of New 
Granada, with nine confederate States. Then, after further 
vicissitudes, centralising tendencies manifested themselves, 
and by the new Constitution, promulgated in 1886, the 
autonomy of the nine States was abolished, and they 
became simple departments of the Be^niblic of Colombia, 
as it is now officially called. The former presidents are , 
merely governors of the departments directly nomin- 
ated l;)y the President of the Eepublic, who is himself 
chosen by electoral colleges for six years. There are 
eight ministers or " secretaries " responsible to Congress, 
which comprises a senate of twenty-seven members (three 
for each of the nine departments), and a House of Eepre- 
.^entatives, with at present sixty- six members, that is, one 



152 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

for every 50,000 inhabitants, returned for four years by 
universal suffrage. This last Constitution seems to have 
worked fairly well till 1900, when public order was 
again disturbed by a serious revolt. 



Religion — Education 

As in Venezuela, the religion of the State is Eoman 
Catholicism, tolerance being extended to all others, so 
far as they conform to the law and to the general 
precepts of Christian morality. Primary education is 
free but not compulsory, and provision is made for higher 
instruction by a national university, four departmental 
colleges, thirty-four public colleges, and fifteen normal 
schools. But in 1895 the total attendance, including 
primary schools, scarcely exceeded 95,000, instead of 
about 300,000, which would be a fair proportion for 
the whole population. 

Natural Resources — Mineral Wealth 

So varied and abundant are its natural resources, 
both above and below ground, that, under a firm and 
enlightened administration Colombia, despite the insalu- 
brious climate of many districts, might soon become one 
of the most prosperous regions in the world. It supplies 
nearly all the platinum as well as the very finest emeralds 
brought to the European market, while gold-bearing reefs 
and washings occur almost everywhere, the total annual 
yield being about £650,000, and the yield of gold and 
silver since the discovery nearly £150,000,000. In 
1891 as many as 4960 mines of all kinds were open, 
including 3398, 794, and 571 of gold in the three de- 
partments of Antioquia, Tolima, and Cauca respectively, 



bjMBIA 

! 


— , 


JSf 


1 



SC? 



COLOMBIA 




/^\ 



COLOMBIA 153 

besides 32 of emeralds, 14 of cinnabar, 7 of manganese, 
and several of platinum, silver, copper, lead, mercury, 
iron, coal, and salt. Extensive coalfields and reservoirs 
of petroleum occur in several districts, so that few regions 
can compare with Colombia for the astonishing variety 
of its underground products. Scarcely less varied are 
those of its forests and cultivated lands, including coffee, 
cocoa, tobacco, sugar, vegetable-ivory, rubber, dye-woods, 
plantains, wheat, and maize. But at present only a small 
part of the country is under tillage, and the development 
of its agricultural resources is greatly retarded by the 
lack of good communications. In 1897 only 400 miles 
of railways had been opened, and only 270 miles were 
in progress, while the so-called roads are for the most 
part mere mule-tracks. 



CHAPTER YI 

ECUADOR 

Extent, Boundaries, Areas, and Populations — Relief of the Land — The 
Eastern Cordillera and the Pacific Coast liange — The Avenue of 
Volcanoes — Chimborazo — Tunguragna — Altar — Cotopaxi — Hydro- 
graphy — The Kios Guayas and Esmeraldas — The Rio Pastasa — The 
Rio Napo — Climate— Flora— Fauna— Inhabitants— The Quitus and 
Caras— The Jivaros— The Zaparos— The Piojes— History— Colonial 
Rule— The Republic— Topography— Resources — Land Tenure— Ad- 
ministration — The Galapagos Lslands. 

Extent, Boundaries, Areas, and Populations 

Ecuador, smallest of the Andean republics, takes its 
name from the equator, by which its northern provinces 
are intersected. On the west it is limited by the Pacific 
Ocean for a distance of nearly 500 miles between 
Colombia and Peru, the conterminous northern and 
southern states. The same states, together with Brazil, 
converge and even overlap about the eastern frontiers, 
where extensive tracts have formed matter of contention 
between all these countries during the nineteenth century 
without any prospect of immediate settlement. So vast 
are these almost uninhabited tracts, that, according as the 
boundaries may be eventually laid down, the superficial 
area of Ecuador may vary as much as from about 100,000 
to 250,000 and even 300,000 square miles. But the 



ECUADOR 



155 



interests involved are, at least for the present, far from 
commensurate with these dimensions, and the negotiations 
are carried on in such a listless way that, whenever the 
diplomatists happen to agree upon some knotty point, 
the Congress of one or other of the litigants is sure to 
reject their decision. Thus a Boundary Treaty, arranged 
between Peru and Ecuador in 1890, was amended by 
Peru in 1893, and revoked by Ecuador in 1894, and 
since then absolutely nothing had been done down to the 
close of the century to settle any one of the territorial 
questions in dispute. 

It may be stated in general that towards the east 
Ecuador claims nothing beyond a conventional line drawn 
from Tabatinga, last Brazilian station on the Solimocns 
(Amazon), northwards across the lower courses of the 
Putumayo, Napo, and Japura to the equator, this line, 
which coincides with the meridian of 70°, 30' W. Gr., 
forming the boundary towards Brazil, and presenting two 
fixed points for determining the southern and northern 
frontiers towards Peru and Colombia. But, pending its 
acceptance and the settlement of the other points in dis- 
pute, the area of Ecuador may be taken at about 156,000 
square miles, with a population of 1,450,000 distributed 
over the seventeen provinces (including the Galapagos 
Archipelago) as under : — 



Provinces. 




Area in sq. miles. 


Population 
(est. 1898). 


Carchi 




1550 


36,000 


Imbabura . 




2500 


68,000 


Pichincha . 




6450 


205,000 


Leon 




2750 


109,000 


Tunguragua 
Cliimborazo 




1750 
3100 


103,000 
122,000 


Bolivar 




1200 


43,000 


Canar (Azogues 


. 


1570 


64,000 




Carry forward 


. 20,870 


750,000 



156 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Provinces. 










irea in sq. miles. 


Population 
(est. 1898). 




Brought forward . 


20,870 


750,000 


Azuay 


. 


4,000 


132,000 


Loja 










3,800 


66,000 


Esineraldas 










5,660 


14,600 


Manabi . 










8,170 


64,100 


Los Rios . 










2,310 


32,800 


Quay as . 










8,500 


98,100 


Oro . 










25 


32,600 


Oriente . 










100,000 


260,000 


Galapagos 










2,970 


200 








Tota 


1 


. 156,305 


1,450,400 



In Ecviador the proportion of full -blood and inde- 
pendent aborigines is far greater than in any other 
Hispano- American state, Bolivia not excepted. The 
" whites," which in official language has a somewhat 
elastic meaning, are "estimated" at about 100,000, 
although " it is said that such a thing as a Spanish 
family of perfectly pure descent is not to be found in the 
country " (Whymper, p. 178). The Mestizos are reckoned 
at 300,000, while all the rest are classed as "Indians." 
A chief difference between the whites and Mestizos is that 
the former are of Spanish speech, while many of the latter, 
as well as some of the Indians, speak both their own 
language and Quichua, which, in the Andean regions, 
has become the lengua general, corresponding to the livgoa 
gcral of Brazil. 

It is also to be noticed, that a distinction is drawn 
between these Quichua -speaking natives, who are also 
salt-eating semi-Christians, and to whom the term "Indios" 
is restricted, and the " Infieles " or " Aucas," that is, the 
real wild tribes, infidels, traitors, rebels, in fact every- 
thing that is bad, who eat no salt, are pagans, speak no 
Quichua, and recognise no authority except that of their 
own chiefs. They occupy the greater part of the 



ECUADOR 157 

province of Oriente, that is, about two -thirds of the 
whole country, comprising the debatable lands sloping to 
the Amazon, while the more or less settled populations 
are mainly confined to the western uplands between the 
Amazon basin and the Pacific Ocean, that is, the Ecua- 
doi'ean Andes. 



Relief of the Land — The Eastern Cordillera and Pacific 
Coast Range 

In the history of geodetic studies Ecuador holds a 
somewhat eminent position. It was visited in the 
eighteenth century by a party of savants — La Condaraine, 
the brothers Alloa, and others — who were commissioned 
by the French Academy of Sciences to measure an arc of 
the meridian on this section of the Andean plateaux and 
Cordilleras, which were at that time supposed to be the 
highest on the globe. Besides the measurement of the 
arc much other useful work was accomplished, and since 
then the country has been explored by several other 
distinguished men of science, notably A. von Humboldt 
and Boupland early in the nineteenth century, and later 
by Villavicencio, Eeiss and Stiibel, T. Wolf, and Mr. E. 
Whymper. 

Yet the main features of its relief are still matters of 
controversy. Between the Knot of Loja towards the 
Peruvian frontier, and the Knot of Pasto within the 
Colombian frontier, the Andean system is commonly 
supposed to develop two somewhat parallel cordilleras, 
converging at both points, and thus enclosing the elevated 
Ecuadorean plateau between two continuous mountain 
barriers. About the existence of the eastern branch, 
which is here often called the " Eoyal Cordillera," and 
traverses the country for over 300 miles in the direction 



158 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

from south to north, there can be no doubt. It does 
not, however, form an unbroken divide between the 
Pacific and Amazon basins, for it is pierced by the 
head-streams of at least two of the Amazonian affluents, 
the Pastasa and the Paute, rising within 35 miles of the 
Pacific, far to the west of the eastern range. 

The very existence of the western " parallel chain " 
is denied by Mr. Whymper, who, however, admits the 
presence of a parallel ridge, which he calls the " Pacific 
Eange of Ecuador," a range 65 miles long by 18 to 20 
wide, enclosed on the east and on the south by the 
valley of the Chimbo affluent of the Kio Guayas, with a 
general elevation in some places of 10,000 feet, above 
which rise peaks 13,000 to 14,000, and probably even 
15,000 feet high. This range, which on the Pacific side 
is densely wooded up to the crests, while almost bare of 
vegetation on its eastern slopes, is crossed on the route 
from the coast to the interior by a pass, which at Tambo 
Gobierno attains an extreme height of 10,417 feet above 
sea-level, and, when seen from the upper slopes of 
Chimborazo, presents a panoramic view of countless 
peaks and ramifying crests — " valleys, vallons, dells, and 
dales, backed by the ocean, rising above the haze which 
obscures the fiat coastland " (Whymper, p. 324). It is 
separated on the north by a large and deep valley from 
the huge mass on which stands Chimborazo, culminating 
summit of Ecuador, and would therefore appear not to 
belong to the Andean system proper. At least it " lies 
outside the main chain of the Andes," and " has nothing 
to do with the 'two parallel cordillers'" {ib. p. 336). 
At its western foot is the somewhat narrow strip of 
Pacific lowlands, and on the east stretches the central 
plateau of Ecuador, which is here furrowed by numerous 
small river vallevs converging; towards the head of tlie 



ECUADOE 159 

Pdo Chimbo at an altitude of 10,000 feet, or about 1000 
feet more than the mean height of the plateau. Owing 
to this general elevation of the land, the numerous peaks 
and cones that rise several thousand feet higher do not 
present the same Alpine character that many smaller 
masses do when viewed from lower levels. The trans- 
verse ridges, which have been compared to the broken 
rungs of a ladder disposed irregularly between the frame- 
work, are nowhere seen in clear or sharp outline, and the 
whole of the interior is rather hilly than mountainous, 
with long stretches of moorland, and broad flat or slightly 
undulating plains, the so-called " basins," such as those 
of Eiobamba, Machachi, and Tumbaco. 



The Avenue of Volcanoes 

Thus " the two parallel Cordilleras, which, according 
to geographers, are the great features of the country, do 
not exist. The axis of the Andes of Ecuador, part of 
the backbone of South America, runs nearly north and 
south ; and towards the western edge of the main chain 
there is a certain sequence of peaks more or less in a 
line with each other. On the east of these summits 
there is a succession of basins of different dimensions and 
of various elevations, and the nearest mountains on the 
eastern side occur at irregular' distances. There is no 
such thing as one great valley in the interior of Ecuador " 
(ib. p. 336). But if the parallel chains have thus to be 
removed, the " sequence of peaks " on both sides stands 
out all the more conspicuously, and constitutes that 
magnificent " avenue of volcanoes " which is unrivalled 
for magnitude and sublimity in the whole world. Here 
are grouped as many as twenty crests and a much larger 
number of peaks, cones, and domes over 15,000 feet high, 




SUMMIT OF CHIMBOKAZfi. 



ECUADOR 



161 



and consequently penetrating into the • region of eternal 
snows, all rising out of or upon and above the main 
chain, and all with the exception of Sara-urcit of igneous 
origin. " Here are volcanoes and volcanic productions 
in every stage. Innnense plains of volcanic sand, 
mountains and vales of tuff and scoriae — in some of the 
lower strata of which are embedded numerous animal 
remains of the Quaternary period — streams of lava, fields 
of pumice, and the great cones themselves ; some extinct, 
others smoking and dormant, and one [two] Sangai [and 
Cotopaxi] in unceasing activity, all ready to break out 
again and devastate the county around them, as they 
have so often done before." ^ 

Subjoined is a table of some of the higher summits in 
the western and the eastern ranges, with their heights, 
as determined by MM. Eeiss and Sttibel and Mr. 
"Whymper : — 



Western Summits. 




Eastern Summits. 




H 


eight ill ft. 


Heiglit in ft. 


Chimborazo 


•20,498 


Cotopaxi . 


19,613 


Illiniza 


17,405 


Cayanibe . 


19,186 


Carihuairazo 


16,515 


Antisana . 


19,385 


Cotocachi . 


16,301 


Altar 


17,730 


Corazon . 


15,871 


Sangay . 


17,464 


Guagua-Pichincha 


15,918 


Tunguragua 


16,690 


liucu-Pichincha 


15,542 


Sincholagua 


16,365 


Kuminagui 


15,607 


Sara-urcu . 


15,749 


Mojanda . 


11,088 

Chiml 


Imbabura . 
)orazo 


15,033 



Although lying on or about the equator, several of 
these giants are not only snow-clad, but also scored by 
glaciers, which feed numerous torrents tumbling down to 
the plains. Such are Cayambe, Cotopaxi, and especially 

^ Alfred Siinson, Travels m the IVilds of Ecuador, p. 43. 
VOL. I M 



162 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGltAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Chimborazo, first ascended in 1879 by Whymper, who 
found that glaciers are discharged by all the upper 
combes encircling the ice -capped cratar. Others have 
even in recent times been the theatre of tremendous 
convulsions, such as that of 1868, when whole towns 
and villages were levelled with the ground, and 50,000 
persons perished in the Cotocachi and Imbabura districts. 
In 1896 the towns of Montecristi, Portoviejo, and Jipi- 
japa were destroyed by an earthquake, the effects of 
which were felt over an area estimated by Mr, Dolby 
Tyler at 55,000 square miles in extent.^ 

Tunguragua — Altar 

Conspicuous amongst the snowy cones of the eastern 
range are the wooded Tunguragua and Capac-uru, " King 
of Mountains," the Altar of the Spaniards, wliich fourteen 
years before the conquest was said to be still somewhat 
higher than Chimborazo. But it has since collapsed, and 
now presents the appearance of a superb jagged and 
rocky crown, whose dark-blue barrancas, that is, rents or 
fissures in its snowy mantle, offer a spectacle the eye is 
never wearied of gazing upon. 

South of Altar rises the ever restless Sangay, and 
away to the north the superb Antisana, at whose foot is 
the hacienda or wayside inn immortalised by Humboldt's 
visit, at an altitude of 13,300 feet above sea-level, that 
is to say, over 1000 feet higher than the Peak of 
Teneriffe. This hacienda, however, is not, as is often 
stated, the highest abode of man in South America, the 
Bolivian mining town of Potosi standing about 20 feet 
higher. 

1 Geogr. Jour. (1896), vol. ii. p. 178- 



ECUADOH 16;3 



Cotopaxi 



On the eastern horizon over against Illiniza towers 
the majestic Cotopaxi, which is without a rival amongst 
the active volcanoes of the Old World. In the perfect 
symmetry of its outlines Cotopaxi is unsurpassed not 
only by any South American volcano, but has elsewhere 
no equal except perhaps Fuji-yama in Japan. " It is 
turned as if with the lathe," said the natives to Humboldt, 
while Orton describes it as a huge cone rising out of the 
valley, its sides deeply furrowed by the torrents of slush 
which have so often been vomited from the crater. The 
cone itself is about 6000 feet high, its eastern side being 
snow-clad, while its western is nearly bare, a contrast due 
to the Atlantic trade -winds which, sweeping up the 
Amazons valley, deposit their moisture in the form of 
snow on the slopes facing eastwards. 

Cotopaxi was for the first time scaled in 1880 right 
up to the crater by Mr. Whymper, who, contrary to 
Halls' experience, found that much of the ascent was a 
mere walk, no climbing being necessary. He describes 
the crater as. an amphitheatre 2300 feet from north to 
south and 1650 from east to west, with a rugged crest 
surrounded by overhanging cliffs, some snow-clad, others 
apparently encrusted with sulphur. " Cavernous recesses 
belched forth smoke, the sides of the cracks and chasms 
no more than half-w^ay down shone with ruddy light, and 
so it continued on all sides right down to the bottom, 
precipice alternating with slope, and the fiery fissures 
becoming more numerous as the bottom was approached. 
At the bottom, probably 1200 feet below us, there was 
a ruddy circular spot, about one-tenth of the diameter of 
the crater, the pipe of the volcano, its channel of com- 
munication with lower regions, filled with incandescent 



ECUADOR 165 

if not molten lava, glowing and burning, with flames 
travelling to and fro over its surface, and scintillations 
scattering as from a wood -fire, lighted by tongues of 
flickering flame which issued from the cracks in the 
surrounding slopes" {op. cit. p. 153). 

Steam undoubtedly plays a large part in the con- 
vulsions of Cotopaxi, and the quantity emitted is occa- 
sionally prodigious. From the slopes of Cayambe, at a 
distance of about 60 miles to the north-east, Mr. 
Whymper saw a volume of steam ejected, which formed 
" a continuous body of not less than sixty cubic miles of 
cloud. If this vast volume, instead of issuing from a 
free vent, had found its passage barred, Cotopaxi on that 
morning might have been effaced, and the whole continent 
might have quivered under an explosion rivalling or 
surpassing the mighty catastrophe at Krakatoa." Heaps 
of ruins, piled up during the lapse of ages, are scattered 
for miles round the base of the mountain, among them 
great boulders 20 feet square. Cotopaxi is the great 
pumice-producing volcano. The new road up the valley 
cuts through a lofty hill formed by the successive erup- 
tions ; and the section, presenting alternate layers of 
mud, ashes, and pumice, is a geological record of the 
volcano. 

Hydrography— The Rios Guayas and Esmeraldas 

If, as is generally supposed, the basins of the central 
plateau were formerly a group of upland lakes at varying 
altitudes, their contents have long been discharged 
through the streams flowing east to the Amazon and 
west to the Pacific. The Pacific drainage is effected 
by several rivers whose basins lie all witliin the territory 
of the republic, but of which two only — Guayas and 
Esmeraldas — are of any importance. 



166 COMrENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

The Guayas, which collects the surface-waters of an 
area estimated at about 14,000 square miles, is formed 
by the convergence of a large number of head-streams, 
such as the Chimho or YaguacM, which sweeps round 
from the eastern slopes of the Pacific range ; the Daule, 
which winds through the flat marshy tracts on the right 
bank ; and the Babahoyo, which rises in the Pacific range, 
and is regarded as the true upper course. Below Bodegas, 
the " stores," that is, the depot for goods in transit and 
landing-stage for travellers mounting to the plateau, the 
main stream expands to a breadth of half a mile, and 
at Guayaquil, a little lower down, merges in an estuary, 
which is the largest inlet on the west coast of South 
America. The Guayas, which is navigable for large 
steamers as far as Bodegas, swarms with alligators, and 
Mr. Simson tells us that he counted as many as five 
hundred basking in the sun on a sandbauk exposed at 
low water. The river is of vital importance to Ecuador, 
its valley, rough as it is, being almost the only route 
which gives access to the Pacific coast. 

The Esmeraldas, whose upper course is the Gtialla- 
bamha, traverses the plain of Quito in a north-westerly 
direction to the little seaport of Esmeraldas below the 
Colombian frontier, and is also navigaljle for a short 
distance. Its basin has an area of nearly 9000 square 
miles, but this route is little used, the country being 
mostly uninhabited, and the fiuvial valley obstructed by 
a tremendous gorge 2000 feet deep at the base of the 
Mqjanda volcano. 

The Rio Pastasa 

That section of the Amazon, which receives contribu- 
tions from the Ecuadorean uplands, flows normally in an 
easterly direction as far as Tabatinga un the Brazilian 



ECUADOR 167 

frontier, and might well serve as a convenient boundary 
between Ecuador and Peru. Besides the already men- 
tioned Paute, the affluents of this section which traverse 
Ecuadorean territory are the Pastasa and the Napo, both 
rising on the plateau, and about midway between these 
two the Tigre, which has its source on the advanced 
out-runners of the Eoyal Cordillera. All three have a 
nearly parallel south-easterly trend, and all flow for 
most of their course through the wilds of the province 
of Oriente, which are still mainly occupied by independent 
native tribes classed in Ecuador as " Infieles " or " Aucas." 
The Pastasa is formed by the junction of the Patate from 
the northern plateau and of the Chamho, which has its 
source on the high land of Alausi, and after a winding 
course along the western slopes of Sangay and Altar 
bends round the base of Tunguragua to the confluence 
just above Baiios. From this point the Pastasa flows 
through a deep valley with steep sides, down which rush 
the Topo, Zitinag, Bio Verde, Bohonaza, and several othei' 
torrents descending from the Llanganati heights to the 
left bank. The Pastasa strikes the north bank of the 
Maranon, as the Amazon is here called, some miles above 
the confluence of the Huallaga from Peru, and over 3000 
miles from the Atlantic. 



The Rio Napo 

North of the Bobonaza all the streams having their 
source in the Ecuadorean Andes converge to form the 
Napo, which may almost take rank with the great 
affluents of the Amazon. The chief headwaters of the 
main stream, which springs from the eastern slope of 
Cotopaxi, are the Curarai, draining the northern slopes 
of Llanganati; the Coca, rising between Antisana and 



168 COMI'EXDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Cayainbi : and the Aguarico, descending from the north- 
eastern Hanks of Cayainbi. From its source to the 
contluence of the Coca, ahnost as large as the main river, 
the Napo runs in a rough stony bed at a steep incline ; 
but beyond its junction with the Aguarico on the left 
and the Curarai on the right, it flows in a smoother but 
still rapid current between low wooded banks, and after 
a course of 7 5 miles is lost in the waters of the Amazon 
500 miles below the Pastasa continence. Here the 
Napo is broader than the Thames at London Bridge, and 
from its mouth to the Curarai junction presents for 
several hundred miles an easy navigable waterway 
through the province of Oriente. 

Beyond the Xapo follows the Futumayo, the Iqa of 
the Brazilians, which, however, rises in Colombia and has 
its outflow at S. Antonio in Brazil, while no part of its 
course lies in undisputed Ecuadorean territory. The 
whole region traversed by these western tributaries of 
the Amazon forms a continuation of the southern wood- 
lands, which in Peru take the name of la montafia. But 
the Ecuadorean montana is more abundantly watered, 
for the climate is one of excessive humidity and con- 
tinuous rainfall, rendering the few forest tracks often as 
impassable as treacherous quagmires. Here the trees 
grow to a greater height than on the lower Amazonian 
plains, and shoot up perfectly straight from the saturated 
soil. Their shady branches are draped with long hoary 
mosses and festooned with orchids and other parasitic 
plants. 

Climate 

The succession of vertically superimposed climatic 
zones, common to all the western uplands, is greatly 
modified in Ecuador by the local conditions. In deter- 



ECUADOR 169 

mining the general distribvition of heat and moisture the 
chief factors are the position of this section of the Andes 
and their eastern slopes in respect of the Amazon valley, 
and the main trend of the Eoyal Cordillera at right 
angles with that valley. 

The whole of the montana, that is, the province of 
Oriente, together with the eastern slopes of the Cordillera, 
comes within the direct influence of the heavily-laden 
clouds rolling up from the Atlantic with the perennial 
trade-winds. Much of the humidity is discharged on the 
Amazonian plains themselves ; but enough remains not 
only to keep the montana in a perpetual state of satura- 
tion, but also to reach the plateau, where it is precipitated 
in the form of snow on all the higher crests, and as rain 
lower down the eastern slopes of the Cordillera. The 
summits of the great volcanoes are wrapt in dense fog 
for months together, and travellers, after long waiting 
for a glimpse of their glittering cones, are told that thus 
they live year in year out. 

On the Pacific slope the rainfall, nowhere heavy, 
decreases normally in the direction from north to south, 
so that the southern districts about the Guayas estuary, 
and the island of Puna at its entrance, come almost within 
the Peruvian rainless zone, and may in any case be 
described as arid. But here as on the montana the 
heats are tropical, with a mean temperature of 79° to 
82° Pahr., while on the plateau, as at Quito, Cuenca, and 
Ptiobamba, it falls to 58° and even 56° Fahr. The 
plateau, being mostly sheltered by the encircling ranges, 
is also much drier than the montana, and even at Quito, 
which receives some moisture through the Esmeraldas 
rift from the Pacific, the annual rainfall averages not 
more than 47 inches. 

It results from these general remarks that, apart 



170 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

from the Alpine heights and the more elevated wintery 
paramos, there are in Ecuador three tolerably well-defined 
climatic zones, corresponding to the three physical zones 
— the montana, essentially tropical, that is, hot and 
moist ; the platean, temperate with moderate heat and 
rainfall ; and the seaboard, hot and dry. It follows also 
that the normal succession of the two seasons — dry 
from about June to January, and wet for the rest of the 
year — -is less clearly marked in Ecuador than in most 
other tropical regions. On the plateau great perturba- 
tions are caused by the large number of snowy mountains," 
while on the eastern slopes there is no succession at all. 
Here, say the natives, " it rains thirteen months in the 
year." 

Flora 

Thanks to this superabundance of moisture, the 
mhanas, that is, the open dry tracts, answering to the 
Venezuelan llanos, are confined in Ecuador to the western 
lowlands, where they alternate with artificial clearings 
for the cultivation of coca, cotton, fruits, and sugar. In the 
vast province of Oriente " all is covered by the same 
dense, impenetrable forest, where the vegetable kingdom 
truly lives a life of struggle for existence, the fittest 
living and thriving upon the death and decay of the 
weaker " (Simson). But forest growths are by no means 
confined to the montana, and extensive wooded tracts 
occur on the eastern flanks of the Cordillera, on the west 
side of the Pacific range and in the Plsmeraldas basin. 
The route from Guayaquil to Quito leads over the spurs 
of Chimborazo through sublime mountain scenery and 
verdant river valleys, amongst which that of the Chimbo 
is especially celebrated. At this elevation the cultivation 
of wheat supplants that of the sugar-cane, while cacao 



ECUADOR 171 

and orange groves have given place, the one to barley, 
the other to clover -fields, lucerne, maize, and beans. 
Guaranda, at an altitude of 8840 feet, is the centre of 
the Peruvian bark trade, vi^hich, however, will here soon 
be a thing of the past, as the trees are being rapidly 
destroyed by the wasteful way of obtaining the bark. 
That of the much -prized Cinchona calisaya is now no 
longer to be had, that of C. siicciruhra being alone pro- 
curable. This is a majestic tree, growing to a height of 
50 or even 60 feet, clothed with bright dark-green oval 
leaves, and bearing a white flower with an aromatic 
fragrance A fresh stem 5 feet in girth yields 1500 lbs. 
of red bark, which, however, during the drying process is 
reduced to 800 lbs. 

But the most valuable plant in Ecuador is the cacao 
tree {Theolroma cacao), which thrives best on the hot 
moist lowlands beneath the shade of taller growths. 
Hence the low-lying districts of this region are admirably 
suited for its cultivation, which has become one of the 
chief industries of the inhabitants. Here the white 
species, which is the best, still runs wild, and is peculiar 
to Ecuador. 

Fauna 

In Ecuador are represented all the large fauna of the 
neighbouring regions. Even the llama ranges as far 
north as the Eiobamba district, beyond which it is re- 
placed by the mule as a pack-animal. As in Colombia, 
a peculiarity of the local fauna, and especially of the 
birds and insects, is the curious tendency of certain 
species to confine themselves to small areas. Like the 
Sierra de Santa ]\Iarta, several of the Great Andes mio;ht 
in this respect be described as little independent zoological 
kingdoms. Such are Antisana, which has a species of 



172 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

ibis {Thcristiciis caudatus) unknown elsewhere; Chimborazo 
and Pichincha, each with a peculiar variety of the 
humming-bird occurring at an altitude of over 14,000 
feet, while on Pichincha Mr. AVhymper also discovered 
eight absolutely new species of beetles, Ecuador is 
extremely rich in these insects, of which as many as 
8000 species have been recorded. 

In the eastern woodlands is heard the soft musical 
note of the Jlautero or " flute-bird," which is a constant 
surprise and delight to travellers in the province of 
Oriente. " His song is not quite the same in all in- 
dividuals, but may be likened in tone to the most mellow, 
sweet-sounding flute ; and the musical correctness of all 
his notes is astonishing. He is a very insignificant- 
looking, little grayish-coloured bird ; and, I was informed, 
always dies in captivity" (Simson, p. 84). 

These eastern forests, which are continuous with those 
of the Amazonian plains, afford cover to numberless 
tapirs, jaguars, pumas, peccaries, venomous snakes in 
endless variety, bloodthirsty insect pests, such as 
mosquitoes, the red tick, the horrible pium fly, and, 
perhaps the greatest plague of all, true vampires in great 
variety and abundance. Some of the popular stories 
connected with these repulsive winged mammals may be 
too highly coloured, but there is no longer any doubt as 
to their blood-sucking propensities. " The depredations 
of these bloodthirsty imps fall heaviest upon children, 
whose blood they seem to have a special liking for. I 
have seen a little Zaparo child at Aguano perfectly pale, 
ansemic, and debilitated by constant loss of blood from 
the head and feet ; and was told of more than one case 
of children entirely succumbing to the attacks of vampires. 
By the foregoing it will be seen that the depredations of 
the vampire are not a mere 'myth of imaginative 



ECUADOR 



173 



travellers/ as Professor Orton, in The Andes and the 
Amazons, describes them" {ih. p. 13o). 



Inhabitants — The Quitus and Caras 

With Ecuador we enter the domain of the Quichua 
race, which was already in possession of the northern 




COCONUCO INDIAN OF COTOCACHI, ECL'ADOR. 

(See the description of this tribe on p. 134.) 

coastlands and of the plateau long before the conquest of 
the country, begun by the Inca Tupac -Yupanqui, and 
completed by his son Huayna-Capac. "Whether the 
Quitus, that is, the earliest known inhabitants of the 
ancient kingdom of Quitu (Quito), were a brancli of the 
Quichua race, is doubtful. But to this connection almost 



174 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

certainly belonged the Cava {Caran) people, who over- 
threw Quitu, last king of the prehistoric dynasty, from 
whom the Quitus and their capital were afterwards 
named. 

The Caras came traditionally on rafts (balsas), ap- 
parently from Peru, formed settlements on the coast 
below the Eio Esmeraldas, and thence ascending to the 
plateau conquered the kingdom of Quitu. Here they 
established the pre-Inca dynasty of the so-called Shyris, 
the last of whom, fifteenth in succession from the founder, 
fell on the battlefield of Hatuntaqui in 1487, when the 
whole region became an integral part of the Peruvian 
Empire. Its fusion in the political system of the Incas 
was all the more easily effected since the Caras were an 
allied race, who spoke a dialect of the Quichua language, 
which is still the common speech of a great part of the 
inhabitants of the plateau and Pacific seaboard. 

The Caras and nearly all the other aborigines of the 
uplands have long been merged in the general Mestizo 
population, in which the Spanish element is but slightly 
represented. Hence the Quitenos, as the inhabitants of 
the plateau are often called in a collective sense, reflect 
in their daily life and social habits the old Quichuan 
culture almost more than that grafted upon it by the 
Spaniards. Indeed, some of their customs are quite 
barbarous, and are a source of constant amazement to 
strangers passing through the country. It is curious to 
read of the capital of a " civilised " state being dependent 
for its supply of water on the public fountains, and their 
basins contaminated by all sorts of abominations, while 
the over- fastidious have twopenny worth brought every 
.morning several miles in large pots. The houses of Quito 
are also destitute of hearths and chimneys, and the same 
primitive conditions characterise all religious and com- 



ECUADOJi 



175 



inerciiil uffairs. Under ati outward show of Christianity 
the old pagan notions still persist, and in the altar-pieces 
representing St. Michael vanquishing the devil, every- 
where a favourite motive, both Archangel and draoion are 
worshipped with equal fervour. 

In the religious processions scenes are witnessed 




WATF.n-nAKRIEUS OF QUITO, FX'UADOR. 

which almost recall the ceremonies preceding the 
sanguinary rites of the old Aztec teocalli. These pro- 
cessions are followed not only by dancers, mimes, and 
masqueraders, but also by the so-called chacatascas or 
public penitents, who, like the flagellants of the ]\Iiddle 



176 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TPAVEL 

Ages and the Indian fakirs, lacerate their half- naked 
bodies with an endless variety of self-inflicted tortures. 



The Jivaros 

In the province of Oriente much the same ethical 
relations prevail as in most other unreclaimed Amazonian 
lands. Here the Indios, or Christian natives, are not 
numerous, being chiefly represented by the Qujos or 
Canelos, settled about the missions of the Upper Napo 
and its headwaters. All the rest — Jivaros of the Pastasa, 
Zcqjaros of the Napo and its southern affluents, Piojes of 
the Aguarico, Middle N"apo, and Putumayo, Iquitos and 
Mazanes of the Tigre, Nanai, and Lower Napo — are still 
" Aucas " or " Infieles," rude wild tribes at various stages 
of savagery, just as at the time of the discovery. 

Some of the Jivaros, who formerly ranged west to the 
Paute, were converted and even reduced by the Spaniards, 
who founded settlements in their midst. But in 1599 
they all rose in a body and destroyed all these settle- 
ments in one day. The Jivaros are a brave, freedom- 
loving people, who can endure no servitude, but are 
advanced enough to till the land and raise crops of maize, 
beans, yucas, and plaintains, while the women are expert 
weavers. Like the negroes of West Africa, they have a 
drum-language, and in every village there is a tunduli or 
great drum, which summons to arms, and issues other 
signals, rapidly propagated far and wide. They also preserve 
the scalp of the enemy, removing it in one piece from 
the neck upwards, and drying it with hot stones in such 
a way that the skin shrinks to about the size of a Jaffa 
orange, while retaining the features of the victim. They 
are very proud of these ghastly trophies, specimens of 
which may be seen in several European museums. 



ECUADOK 177 



The Zaparos 



In the ISTapo basin the dominant people are the 
Zaparos, who occupy a territory about the size of Wales 
between the Napo and the Pastasa. They are very 
numerous, or, at least, are broken into numerous sub- 
groups, of which as many as thirteen are mentioned by 
C. D. Taylor. Of these some, especially the Ahuishiris, 
are fierce, irreclaimable savages, while others, perhaps the 
majority, have the reputation of being gentle, hospitable, 
and well disposed towards Europeans, although living in 
a state of constant feud among themselves. Like the 
Guarani, to whom they may possibly be remotely allied, 
they have a Mongolic expression, with small slant eyes, 
thick flat nose, thick lips, and round, beardless face. 

Amongst the Zaparos an echo would appear to survive 
of the Shamanistic religion so widely diffused over North 
America and Siberia. Like the shaman of the Tunguses, 
their shimanu is a true mediator between the good and 
•evil spirits, with whom they hold commune during 
delirious trances brought on by drinking the ayaliucisca 
or divining liquor. They also perform conjuring tricks, 
and, like the Australian medicine men, extract the darts 
which some enemy is supposed to have stuck into the 
body of people suffering from any pain or ailment. But 
Mr. Simson does not think they are imposters, but rather, 
by constant repetition, come to acquire a kind of super- 
stitious belief in their own deceptive practices. 

The Piojes 

On the Kapo and its Aguarico affluent also dwell the 
Piojes, who are akin to the Macaguajes of the Putumayo. 
Although classed as Aucas, those who come in contact 
VOL. I N 



178 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

with traders disclaim the title, and call themselves 
Christians, meaning, jjerhaps, civilised or settled, and not 
merely wild tribes like their Zaparo neighbours. From 
these they differ greatly in dress, arms, and many 
customs, and are certainly far more civilised, as they not 
only cultivate the soil, growing large crops of cassava and 
plaintains, but also own a large breed of dogs well trained 
for the hunt. From the poisonous species of mandioca 
they prepare the so-called cassava, a dry cake somewhat 
like the unleavened bread of the Jews, which has the 
great advantage of keeping well for a long time in their 
moist climate. These peaceful, industrious natives are 
exposed to the attacks of the savage Ahuishiris, and also 
suffer occasionally at the hands of lawless white traders, 
although well disposed towards all strangers. 

History — Colonial Rule 

After the conquest of the country by the Incas (see 
above) Quitu was not reduced to a mere dependency or 
outlying province of the Peruvian empire, but the old 
kingdom was reconstituted as a separate state, inde- 
pendent of, and at times even hostile to the central 
government. Indeed, one of the immediate causes of the 
downfall of the Incas was the rivalry of the two states, 
which had been engaged in open warfare just before the 
Conquistadores arrived on the scene, and almost at a 
single stroke destroyed both branches of the old dynasty 
of the Incas. 

On the death of the last of the Shyri rulers, Huayna- 
Capac is said to have arrested further resistance by marry- 
ing that monarch's daughter. Pacha, and taking up his 
residence in Quitu. Moreover, he destroyed the unity of 
the empire by leaving Cuzco (Peru) to the legitimate heir, 



ECUADOR 179 

Huascar, and Quitu (Ecuador) to Pacha's son, Atahualpa 
The two half-brothers soon fell out, and Atahualpa had 
just defeated and captured Huascar when he was him- 
self treacherously seized and put to death by Pizarro 
(1532). 

The transition from native to Spanish rule was 
marked by the foundation of the present city of Quito by 
Belalcazar in 1534. But the first governor of the 
province was Gonzalo Pizarro, appointed in 1540 by his 
brother Francisco shortly before his assassination. After 
Gonzalo's execution in 1550 the province of Quito 
became a Presidency under the viceroys of Peru, and, 
except for a short interval when it was transferred to 
Bogota (1710-22), remained an administrative de- 
pendency of Peru during the Colonial period. Under 
the oppressive Spanish rule, the chief event was the 
terrible earthquake of 1797, which rent the continent 
from Cuzco and Panama, and in a few seconds destroyed 
40,000 persons in Quito alone. 

The Republic 

The people were unprepared for self-government when 
Ecuador was constituted an independent state. The new 
republic was, however, governed well during the first 
fifteen years of its existence, under the able administra- 
tions of General Elores and of the accomplished scholar 
and statesman, Vicente Eocapuarta. There were troubles 
during some of the succeeding years, until General Elores 
returned in 1860. Under Garcia Moreno the priests 
obtained undue influence for fifteen years. For the last 
ten years Antonio Elores, son of the General, and Lewis 
Cordero have served their regular terms, and Don Eloy 
Alfaro has been President since 1896, 



ISO COMPENDIUxM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

Topography 

In Ecuador the urban groups are all concentrated on 
the plateau, and along the main route leading from the 
coast to the interior. Despite earthquakes and political 
disorders Quito, the capital of the State, has a population 
estimated at about 80,000, but according to Whymper 
not more than 35,000, mostly Mestizos, with a few 
whites, and in the suburbs a considerable number of pure 
Indians. It stands at an altitude of 9343 feet, near the 
source of the Esmeraldas, under the shadow of Pichincha. 
It is laid out in the form of a perfect square, with a few 
straggling environs, and may feel prouder of its fine 
Eenaissance churches than of its ill -paved streets. A 
great part of the city is covered with churches and 
convents, which contrast strangely with the mean and 
dilapidated appearance of most of the houses. One of 
the chief local industries is the execution of oil-paintings, 
mostly religious subjects, which are largely exported to the 
surrounding countries. Another speciality are the dried 
skins of birds, especially those of humming-birds, brought 
in from all parts, but chiefly by the Indians from the 
river Napo. The Indians also bring to Quito the well- 
known vegetable -ivory nuts, which are carved by the 
local artists into rude little figures, painted in Ijright 
colours, and sold to the country people. 

From Quito the main route leads between tlie Avenue 
of Volcanoes southwards to all the large towns on the 
plateau — Latacunga and Amhato, not far from Chimborazo, 
each with about 10,000 inhabitants; Riohamha, near the 
source of the Pastasa, west of Altar ; Alausi, south-west 
of Sangai ; Citenca, far to the south in the upper Paute 
basin ; and Loja in the same basin, but much nearer the 
Peruvian frontier. Cuenca may have a population of 



ECUADOK 



181 



25,000 and Eiobamba of 1L>,000, while that of all the 
others falls probably below 10,000. They stand at 
elevations ranging from about 8500 to a little over 9000 
feet, and with their low cheerless houses, dusty or else 
muddy streets, and unlovable surroundings, present the 
same general aspect of hopeless dreariness. 

But noble buildings, spacious thoroughfares, and other 
civic attractions can scarcely be looked for in an im- 




GUAYAQUIL. 

poverished land, where whole cities may at any moment 
be buried beneath a treacherous soil, or overwhelmed by 
some sudden display of volcanic energy. Such was the 
fate of Cacha near Eiobamba, which, with its 5000 
inhabitants, was swallowed up in 1640 in a still yawning 
chasm. Eiobamba itself was destroyed in 1797, and 
has been rebuilt on a new site less exposed to such 
disasters. 

Perhaps the largest and almost the most important 
place in the whole country is the seaport of Guayaquil, 



182 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

at the head of the Guayas estuary, where is centred 
nearly all the foreign trade of Ecuador. It was founded 
by Belalcazar in 1535 near the old Indian city of Culenta, 
with which it was connected across swamps and back- 
waters by a causeway nearly half a mile long. Duran, 
opposite Guayaquil, which has a reputed population of 
50,000, is the seaward terminus of the only railway in 
the country. It was begun many years ago to connect 
the plateau with the sea-coast, but only about 60 miles 
have yet been completed, that is the section running from 
Cliitiibo to Duran. Guayaquil is accessible at low water 
only to small vessels, and those of heavy draught have to 
ride at anchor lower down the estuary. Harbour works 
are much needed to improve the approaches ; but these, 
like the railways and the highways, for the most part 
mere bridle-paths, still await the advent of a firm and 
enlightened administration to introduce the practical 
measures required to open up the resources of the country. 

Eesources — Land Tenure 

These resources, if inferior to those of Peru and 
Colombia, are by no means despicable. The emeralds, 
which gave their name to the Esmeraldas river, are no 
longer found. But the profitable gold-washings in this 
wonderfully fertile low-lying Esmeraldas valley are proof 
enough of the presence of rich auriferous quartz-reefs on 
the uplands. At present the only mine actually open is 
that of Zaruma, although the washings yield gold-dust in 
the proportion of about two shillings of every cubic metre 
dealt with. 

Agriculture is in a rudimentary state ; there are no 
ploughs anywhere to be seen, and in some districts the 
corn is still thrashed by the primitive process of " sabot- 



ECUADOR 183 

dancing." Hence it is not surprising that a land, which 
might yield enough for the wants of twenty times the 
present population, is still largely dependent on California 
and Chili for its supply of wheat and flour. 

This backward state of the agricultural interests is no 
doubt partly due to the constant political ferment which 
drives off capital, but also in great measure to the feudal 
system of land tenure. The whole country belongs to a 
few absentee owners, whose estates are often of boundless 
extent. Thus one great lord owns the whole of Cayambe, 
with Sara-Urcu and all the intervening plains and valleys. 
Another is master of Antisana with all its farmsteads, 
pastures, and live-stock, and he is himself ignorant of the 
extent of his domain, which stretches for an unknown 
distance eastwards in the direction of the Amazon. 



Administration 

The republic is constituted much in the same way 
as that of Colombia, with a centralised authority, and 
provinces administered by governors, who are appointed 
by and are directly responsible to the State. By the Con- 
stitution of 1884, modified in 1887, the President and 
the Vice-President are Ijoth elected by the people for 
four years, and perform their functions through a Cabinet 
of five ministers, who, as well as the President, may be 
impeached by Congress. This legislative assembly con- 
sists of a Senate with two members for each province 
chosen for four years, and a Chamber of Deputies chosen 
for two years in the proportion of one for every 30,000 
inhabitants. The franchise is limited to adults who can 
read and write, and are Eoman Catholics. 

Not only is the Catholic the State religion, but 210 
other cult is tolerated. Primary instruction is both free 



184 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

and obligatory, and for the higher education there are 
three Universities, those of Quito, Cuenca, and Guayaquil, 
besides nine High and thirty-five Secondary Schools. In 
1899 the total attendance was about 70,000, the in- 
struction imparted being strictly " orthodox." 



The Galapagos Islands 

This interesting group of islands belongs politically to 
Ecuador, but being almost destitute of inhabitants, is 
administered as a " territory." It lies due west of Quito, 
being crossed towards the north by the equator, and 
consists of nine or ten islands of varying size, but all of 
volcanic origin. The surface is generally bare and arid, 
although a few cone-shaped hills, ranging from 1600 to 
about 3600 feet, are covered with grass, thanks to the 
mists in which they are generally wrapped. The chief 
members of the Archipelago are Albemarle, the largest 
(1710 square miles), Chatham, Narborough, Indefatigable, 
James, Hood, and Charles I. or Floreana, with a total 
area of 3170 square miles, and a population of less than 
300, mostly concentrated in Chatham. When discovered 
by Tomas de Berlanga in 1535 the group was found to 
be uninhabited, but was afterwards resorted to by buc- 
caneers, whalers, and even a few settlers from Ecuador. 
The cotton, tobacco, fig, orange, plum, and other plants 
introduced by these colonists now run wild, as do also 
the cattle, horses, asses, pigs, cats, dogs, goats, and 
poultry. 

But for zoologists the chief interest attaches to the 
indigenous animals — birds and reptiles — which when 
examined by Darwin during the voyage of the Beagle 
were found to be distinct species unknown elsewhere. 
Of the twenty-five kinds of land birds described by the 



To face page 184. 




Sianfordls Geod^ ^stab'^ Icjndm. 



iiford. 12. 13 & 14, LoELg Acre. WC. 



EC UADOR 



To far, pag» 13-t 



.%■'" 






/" ^ C I F I I 



O C £" -4 iV ^ «. J^ 



- * ™^P' f 






Scale, 1:6.336,000. 100En<fliBhSltttiit*MilefiU.l Incl 



I r S 1 




ifordis (kou'- E^taB^ LanAi 



ECUADOK 185 

great naturalist (the number has since been increased by 
further research) all but one proved to be peculiar to the 
group. Many of these were finches with remarkably 
broad beaks. Peculiar also were a remarkable species of 
turtle, a gigantic tortoise, two strange kinds of lizards, 
and some snakes. The nearest allied forms occur, as 
might be expected, in South America, from which the 
nearest islands are distant only 140 miles. 

A remarkable circumstance . connected with this 
isolated fauna is the restricted area of some of the 
forms, the finches, for instance, of one island being re- 
presented by allied but quite distinct species on another. 
In seeking for an explanation of these phenomena, the 
important fact was noticed that the islands containing 
such distinct species were separated from each other by 
deep channels with strong currents. The islands, being 
volcanic and rising abruptly from the abyss, must have 
been separately upheaved by submarine forces, and could 
never have since been closely connected either with their 
neighbours or with the adjacent Continent. They were 
peopled by their present species at a period sufficiently 
remote to allow time for much variation in the characters 
of the different forms. This isolated development in 
separate areas was one of those striking facts, which 
ultimately led to the Darwinian doctrine of the origin of 
species, and generally to the establishment of modern 
evolutionary teachings. It became obvious to the 
meanest understanding that such isolated forms, in small 
areas of relatively late igneous origin, could not have 
been specially created, but were slowly modified by 
natural selection and gradual adaptation to their new 
environment. 



CHAPTEK VII 

PERU 

Extent, Area, Population— Physical Features : Plateaux and Cordilleras 
—The Negra and Blanca Kanges— The Cerro de Pasco and Carabaya 
Range— The Volcanic Zone: Misti— Ornate— Tutupaca— Underground 
Agencies — Thermal Waters — Varied Scenery — Local Terminology- 
Hydrography — The Amazon System — The Maranon and 
Putumayo— The Ucayali System— The Huallaga and Javari— Pacific 
Drainage — Lacustrine Basins — Lake Titicaca — Climate — Flora- 
Fauna— Inhabitants— The Cultured Peoples— The Yuncas — The 
Aymaras— The Quichuas— Empire of the Incas— The Uncultured 
Peoples- The Antis — Tlie Chunchos— Topography— Railway Enter- 
prise — Natural Resources : Vegetable Products ; Guano ; Minerals — 
Causes and Results of the Chilian War— The Peruvian Corijoration— 
Administration. 

Extent, Area, Population 

In colonial times the Vice-royalty of Peru, so named 
from an obscure coast-stream the very existence of which 
has since been questioned, comprised by far the larger 
part of Spanish South America. But the long wars of 
independence, in which several of its dependencies 
played their own part, were followed by a more or less 
voluntary dismemberment of this vast domain, leaving 
to the central or Peruvian section a territory of about 
half a million square miles. Since then this area has 
been further reduced by readjustments of frontiers, and 
especially by the permanent cession of some 20,000 



PERU 



187 



square miles to Chile after the disastrous war of 1879-81. 
Besides this loss of the provice of Tarapaca, the two 
provinces of Tacna and Arica were also ceded for a 
period of twelve years, on the understanding that their 
future position should then be decided by a vote of the 
inhabitants themselves. For various reasons the decision 
was deferred till the year 1898, when a convention 
for the purpose of carrying out the plebiscite was 
signed at Santiago. Pending the settlement of the 
boundary questions with Colombia, Ecuador, and Brazil, 
involving perhaps over 200,000 square miles of un- 
developed forest tracts, the present area of the republic 
within its recognised limits exceeds 460,000 square 
miles, with a coast-line of about 1200 miles running from 
the Arica bend in a north-westerly direction to the 
Guayaquil estuary. Landwards its territory is conter- 
minous on the north with Ecuador and Colombia, on the 
north-east with Brazil, on the east and south with 
Bolivia and Chile, the Bolivian frontier being much more 
extensive than any of the others. Owing to the ex- 
cessive infant mortality, and the great ravages of small- 
pox amongst the aborigines, the population appears to 
have remained almost stationary since the last census of 
1876, when it was returned at 2,621,000 (besides some 
350,000 uncivilised Indians), distributed amongst the 
nineteen departments as under : — 

Departments. 
Piura 
Cajamarca 
Amazonas 
Loreto . 
Libertad 
Ancachs 
Lima 1 
Callao J 
Huaneavelica 



Area in sq. miles. 


Population 


. 13,931 


135,502 


. 14,188 


213,391 


. 14,129 


34,245 


. 3-2,727 


61,125 


15,649 


147,541 


17,405 


284,091 


14,760 


f 226,922 




l 34,492 


. 10,815 


104,155 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Departments. 




Area in sq. miles 


Population 


Huanuco "\ 
Junin J 






33,822 


/ 78,856 
I 209,871 


lea 






6,295 


60,111 


Ayacucho 






24,213 


142,205 


Cuzco 






95,547 


238,445 


Puno 






39,743 


256,594 


Arequipa 






27,744 


160,282 


Moquegua 






22,516 


28,786 


Apurimac 






62,325 


119,244 


Lambayeque . 






. 17,939 


85,984 




463,747 


2,621,844 


Wild Tribes . ' 


350,000 


Tot 


al est 


. pop. 1898 


2,971,844 



Of the present inhabitants of Peru more than half, 
or about 57 per cent, are believed to be full-blood 
Indians, for the most part direct descendants of the 
ancient people, who still speak the Quichua language, 
and preserve almost unimpaired the consciousness of 
their former greatness as an imperial race. About 23 
per cent are Mestizos — partly Cholos, partly Zambos, 
and the remaining 20 per cent mostly full -blood 
Spaniards, with nearly 20,000 Europeans and Americans, 
and perhaps 25,000 Asiatic coolies, mainly from the 
southern provinces of China. 



Physical Features : Plateaux and Cordilleras 

That section of the Cordilleras which lies within the 
political frontiers of Peru presents some distinctive 
characters, the most striking of which are its general 
trend and its horizontal development. About the lati- 
tude of Arica towards the Chilian frontier the whole 
system bends round somewhat abruptly from the normal 
south-north to a north-wester! y direction, which is 
maintained bv the main ranges for a distance of 1200 



PEKU 189 

miles to the Loja knot within the Ecuadorean frontier. 
At the same time the uplands broaden out in the 
direction from west to east far beyond the Peruvian 
frontier, thus embracing a large part of the neighbouring 
Bolivian republic, and developing a vast tableland, sur- 
passed in extent and altitude only by the great Tibetan 
plateaux. This tableland, which stands at a mean 
elevation of from 11,000 to 12,000 feet, is enclosed east 
and west by the two main branches of the Andean system. 
In Peru these ramparts are respectively known as 
the Andes and the Western Goi^dillera, the former term 
being used in a pre-eminent and exclusive sense, while 
Cordillera is also applied to the secondary ridges running 
either parallel or transversely to the main ranges. In 
general their elevation is less than that of the Chilian and 
Ecuadorean sections, and in the south the western branch, 
although presenting towards the sea the appearance of 
an unbroken rocky barrier of great height, rises in reality 
but little above the level of the plateau, of which in fact 
it forms the seaward escarpment. 



The Negra and Blanca Ranges 

But farther north are developed the two lofty 
and parallel crests of the Cordillera Negra and the 
Cordillera Nevada, where the Peruvian system attains 
its greatest elevation. Here the Cordillera Negra, 
that is, the outer range between the sea and the 
Pdo Huaraz, or upper valley of the Eio Santa coast- 
stream, rises above 16,000 feet, while its low^est 
passes stand at an altitude of 13,800 feet. But no 
snow lodges on its upper crests, which, in contrast to 
the inner range, remain bare and bleak, whence its 
epithet of " Negra." 



190 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Still loftier is the parallel inner range of the 
Cordillera Nevada or Blanca, i.e., " white," which runs at 
an altitude of over 18,000 feet between the Eio Huaraz 
and the upper Maranon valley, and thus forms the true 
water-parting between the Pacific and the Atlantic 
slopes. Here stand all the highest summits of the 
Peruvian highlands — the Gerro de Huandoy, the Cerro 
de Hucdean, and the twin -peaked Cerro de Huascan, 
all certainly over 20,000 feet, while, according to the 
measurements of Hindle, Huascan towers to a height of 
more than 22,000 feet 



The Cerro de Pasco and Carabaya Eange 

Towards the sources of the Maranon all the main 
ranges, with their connecting cross-ridges, converge in the 
knot of the Cerro de Pasco, which takes its name from 
the neighbouring upland town of Pasco. In this rugged 
alpine region, where the plateau formation almost dis- 
appears amid a chaos of irregular crests and chains, the 
Huaylillas peak rises considerably above 16,000 feet. 
Here the Carabaya section of the eastern rampart facing 
the Amazonian slopes has several snowy summits falling 
little below 16,000 feet, while Chololo within the 
Bolivian frontier has an estimated altitude of over 
17,600 feet. This snowy Carabaya range, where the 
Inambari and other headwaters of the Madre-de-Dies 
have their source, throws out its eastern spurs as far as 
67° W. long., which gives an extreme breadth of about 
850 miles for the Peruvian uplands at their widest part 
between Cuzco and 10° S. lat. 

Farther north the plateau formation continually 
decreases in breadth in the direction of Ecuador, while 
the Cordilleras in the northern provinces fall proportion- 



PEKU 191 

ally in height and acquire a more irregular character. 
Here the system breaks into a number of separate ridges 
with peaks often not more than 10,000 feet high, but 
still generally disposed in the same north-westerly 
direction as the main ranges. 



The Volcanic Zone : Misti — Ornate — Tutupaca 

Passing southwards from Ecuador, the traveller is at 
once struck by a marked change in the aspect of the 
scenery, due to a total absence of volcanoes. No burn- 
ing mountains occur anywhere except in the southern 
section of the Western Cordillera, where they are mainly 
confined to the districts of Arequipa and Moquegua. 
Here are disposed roughly, in a line with the main crest, 
a considerable number of extinct and quiescent cones, 
some of which may approach and even exceed 20,000 
feet in altitude. But, pending accurate measurements, 
the estimates of observers vary greatly, as in the case of 
Misti, most conspicuous and best known member of the 
group, for which the estimates range from 17,900 to 
20,260 feet. North of this central cone, which over- 
shadows Arequipa, the loftiest summits appear to be 
Chachani (19,820 ?), Acliataylum (18,700 ?), Sara-Sara 
(20,000 ?), Coro-Puna, while to the south rise Ubinas, 
the elongated and restless Ornate {Huayna- Patina), and 
near the Chilian frontier Tutupaca or Candarave 
(18,960?). 

Both Omate and Tutupaca have been the scene of 
terrific explosions, the latter in 1779, the former in 
1600, when Arequipa, over 42 miles away, was nearly 
destroyed by an earthquake, and then wrapped in a 
shroud of black smoke for ten days. Prodigious quanti- 
ties of scoriaj and aslies were ejected, the volcanic dust 



192 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

was wafted 930 miles seawards, and the roar of the 
groaning mountain was distinctly heard in Lima, 530 
miles away to the north. One of the highest observa- 
tories in the world has been erected by the American 
astronomer, Mr. Pickering, on the Carmen Alto, a span 
of Mount Misti about midway between the volcanoes of 
Chachani in the north-west and TTbinas in the south-east. 



Underground Agencies — Thermal Waters 

Underground disturbances are, if less frequent, 
certainly more violent in Peru than in Japan itself. 
I^or are they restricted to any particular area, and are 
felt quite as much in the igneous districts, despite their 
volcanic " safety-valves," as in other parts of the " sea- 
board and of the plateau. At Lima, away to the north, 
the seismograph records on an average as many as eight 
yearly shocks, one of which levelled its port of Callao in 
1746. Arica and Arequipa were nearly destroyed in 
1868, and the whole of this seaboard was again ravaged 
in 1877. 

The presence of dormant subterranean forces is attested 
by numerous thermal springs occurring in every part of 
the country, and generally abounding in mineral sub- 
stances. Such are the so-called Bano del Inca, the 
" Inca's Baths " ; the Agua Caliente, " Hot Waters " ; 
Brioso, Chincay, Chancos, Fararcar, Patina, and many 
others. 



Varied Scenery — Local Terminology 

Pew regions of the globe present a greater diversity 
of sublime or picturesque scenery than the Peruvian 
section of the Andean uplands, with their western and 



PERU 193 

eastern fringes of dry, arid seaboard, and moist 
Amazonian woodlands. Here some confusion is caused 
by the peculiar use of certain terms, by which the 
different superimposed zones are locally distinguished. 
Thus the montana comprises, not the Alpine heights, but 
the lowest zone of wooded Amazonian slopes up to about 
5000 feet. So also sierra is applied, not so much to 
any particular jagged crest, as in other parts of the 
Spanish -speaking world, as to the temperate zone, 
generally between 5000 and 11,000 feet. Higher up 
follows the 'pivna, corresponding to the Venezuelan and 
Colombian paramo — a narrow zone of cold, bleak terraces 
and passes from 11,000 to 14,000 or 15,000 feet, above 
which are the snowy crests and slopes of the Alpine 
region, designated as the cordillera, also in a special sense. 

This singular diversity in the character of the land- 
scape is referred to in vivid language by Mr. E. G. 
Squier, who remarks that nowhere else does nature 
assume grander, more imposing or varied aspects than in 
Peru. " Deserts as bare and repulsive as those of the 
Sahara alternate with valleys as luxuriant as those of 
Italy. Lofty mountains, crowned with eternal snow, lift 
high their rugged sides over broad bleak punas or table- 
lands, themselves more elevated than the summits of the 
Alleghanis. Elvers taking their rise among melting 
snow precipitate themselves through deep and rocky 
gorges into the Pacific, or meander, with gentle current, 
amongst the majestic Andes to swell the flood of the 
Amazon. There are lakes ranking in size with those 
that feed the St. Lawrence, whose surfaces lie almost 
level with the summit of Mont Blanc." ^ 

No greater contrast can well be conceived than the 
two neighbouring regions of the Amazonian slope and 

^ Peru: Incidents of Travel, etc., 1877. 
VOL. I 



194 COMPENDIUM or GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the Andean uplands — a contrast apparent as much in 
the conformation of the land as in its climate and 
natural products. The montaiia, as above defined, pre- 
sents itself as a boundless, relatively low -lying, hot 
alluvial region, traversed in every direction by great 
rivers teeming with multitudes of fishes in endless 
variety of size and form. It is a land covered with 
virgin forest, laden with luxuriant foliage and brilliant 
blossom, rich in medicinal and other useful plants, birds 
and wild animals, but thinly peopled with a few hordes 
of savage Indians, struggling for existence against a too 
exuberant nature. Here are seen the luxuriant growths 
of the tropical world — tree-ferns, the graceful bamboo 
and lovely palms, such as the PasMnha, shooting straight 
up from its curious stilt -like aerial roots. Here prowls 
the hungry jaguar, and all the land teems with 
humming-birds, bright butterflies, and deadly snakes. 
Here also thrive the sugar-cane, the coffee, cacao and 
coca plants, the manioc root, and the valuable species of 
the yellow chinchona bark known as C. calisaya, which 
was obtained from this region by Sir Clements Markham 
in 1860. 

The mountainous parts of Peru, on the contrary, 
though of less extent, present far more varied features, 
and everywhere reveal the traces of a thousand historical 
memories. Its Pacific seaboard, where in some places 
are stored up for future use inexhaustible supplies of 
petroleum, forms a long arid waste, at certain intervals 
intersected by narrow green river-valleys. These wind- 
ing strips of verdure are fertilised in the rainless zone by 
the short coast-streams resulting from the melting of 
the snows on the gigantic Cordilleras, which at some 
points tower to a majestic height within a few miles of 
the rock-bound shores of the ocean. 



PERU 195 

Farther inland the elevated plateau, ranging from 
11,000 to 14,000 feet above the sea, is flanked on one 
side by the unbroken line of the Western Cordillera, and 
on the other by the less connected eastern chain of the 
Andes. Here are situated the cold, barren, cheerless 
despoUados and the scarcely less extensive punas, whose 
scanty herbaceous vegetation yields but a meagre fare to 
the llama and alpaca. Here are also situated those hill- 
encircled holsones, or closed valleys, with the climate 
and products of the temperate zones, where formerly 
flourished the mysterious civilisation of the Incas. 
Here are seen those deep, narrow, mountain gorges, 
where the thousand head-streams of the Amazon collect 
their waters before forcing their way over roaring 
cataracts and through the dark clefts of the Andes 
down to the plains of Brazil. 



Hydrography — The Amazon System 

Partly on geographical, partly on political grounds, 
the mighty Amazonian fluvial system is usually and 
conveniently divided into three great sections — the 
Maranon or upper course, from its farthest sources in 
the Peruvian highlands, to Tabatinga on the Brazilian 
frontier ; the Solimoens or middle course, from this 
point to the Eio Negro confluence ; and the Amazon 
proper, or lower course, from the Eio Negro to the 
Atlantic. 

The two latter sections of the main stream, too-ether 
with most of their ramifying branches, are comprised 
within the confines of Brazil, while the upper section, 
together with the upper valleys of some of the Solimoens 
affluents, belong entirely to Peru. Here rise and flow 
for hundreds of miles the Maraiion, the Huallaga, and 



196 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the Ucayali, that is, the three farthest head-streams of 
the whole system, which with the Paute, Pastasa, Tigre, 
and Napo from Ecuador converge above Tabatinga to 
form the Solimoens. The three Peruvian valleys are all 
disposed mainly parallel to each other in the direction 
from south to north, the Ucayali in the east, that is, 
along the inland slope of the Andes chain ; the Huallaga 
in the middle, that is, mainly through the heart of the 
plateau ; and the Maranon in the west, that is, nearest 
to the Pacific along the inner foot of the Western 
Cordillera. 

It is apparently owing to this westernmost posi- 
tion, farthest from the Atlantic, that the Maranon is 
commonly regarded as the true upper course of the 
Amazon. But were the question to be decided by length 
and volume, this honour should certainly be transferred 
to the Ucayali, which at the conHuence is the larger of 
the two, and has also a much longer course, as was 
already suspected by La Condamine in the eighteenth 
century. The same view has since been taken by Squier 
and others. 

In any case the Ucayali was already known from 
Arana's expedition of 1866 to be navigable by steamers 
for hundreds of miles above the Maranon confluence. 
For 600 miles to the mouth of the Pachitea, a tributary 
from the west, it was found to have an average depth of 
from 40 to 70 feet, with a gentle current of only two to 
three miles an hour. The Pachitea itself was ascended 
for a further distance of 204 miles to the junction of 
the Falcazu, on the banks of which is situated the 
village of Mayro, the nearest point to Lima, at which 
this vast fluvial system begins to be navigable. The 
two smaller steamers of the expedition had no difficulty 
in reaching the port of Mayro, thus proving that by 



PERU 197 

this route the Amazon and its tributaries are navigable 
for 3623 miles to within 325 miles of the Peruvian 
capital. 

It should be mentioned that a treaty was concluded 
in 1851 with Brazil, securing the free navigation of the 
Amazon by Peruvian vessels between the Atlantic and 
these interior districts. Since 1862 the great water- 
ways within Peruvian territory have, thanks to this 
arrangement, been regularly traversed by steamers in 
conjunction with the lines of Brazilian vessels plying 
between the Atlantic port of Para and Tabatinga on the 
Peruvian frontier. 



The Maranon and Putumayo 

The Maranon, which issues from the little Lake 
Lauricocha, north of the Cerro de Pasco, at an altitude 
of 14,270 feet above sea-level, flows for a long distance 
in the normal north-westerly direction in a deep and 
somewhat narrow bed, forcing its way through the Andes 
proper in a series of wild rocky gorges and rapids, here 
called pongos. At the Pongo de Manserichc, last and 
most famous of these narrows, it has already reached 
the low level of about 550 feet above the sea, so that 
from this point to the estuary the fall is scarcely per- 
ceptible. In the latitude of about 5° S. it curves round 
from the north-west to the east, and retains this direction 
for the rest of its course to the Atlantic. 

In the debatable region between Peru and Ecuador 
the Maraiion is joined on its right bank by the Huallaga 
and the Ucayali, and at S. Antonio on the left below 
Tabatinga by the Putumayo, which, although mainly a 
Colombian river, enters Brazil in its lower course, and 
higher up flows for some distance through territory con- 



198 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

tested by Colombia and Peru. After its junction with 
the S. Miguel and other head-streams about the frontiers 
of Colombia and Ecuador, and not far from the Cerro de 
Loja, the Putuniayo takes a south-easterly course through 
the wooded Amazonian plains, where it is navigable by 
small steamers for about 900 miles from Montepa to the 
Solimoens. But the navigation is almost everywhere 
much obstructed by tortuous windings, shoals, and shifting 
sandbanks. 

The Ucayali System 

Unlike the Putumayo and the Maranon, the Ucayali is 
formed by the junction, not of two or more separate head- 
streams, but of two great fluvial systems, whose intricacies, 
increased by an uncertain nomenclature, have not yet 
been entirely unravelled. One of its chief sources lies 
far to the south in the lakelet de la Eaya, on the northern 
slope of the Cerro de Vilcanota, which forms the divide 
between the Amazon and the closed basin of Lake Titicaca. 

Here rises the Vilcamayo, which lower down becomes 
the already mentioned Urubamba, and is joined on its 
right bank by the Paucartambo. At this confluence the 
main stream thus formed is variously known as the 
Quillabamha, Uruhamba, and Vilcamayo, some confusion 
being caused by this twofold use of the two last mentioned 
terms, which, with the alternative Quillabamba, are in- 
differently applied to the section of the south-eastern 
system between the mouth of the Paucartambo and the 
confluence of the south-western branch, as the second 
great system may be called. 

This is both the more intricate and apparently the 
longer of the two, its most southern source being, accord- 
ing- to some authorities, in the Cordillera de Chila, within 
100 miles of the Pacific Ocean, while its westernmost 



PERU 199 

supplies come from the Junin basin beyond Lake Ghin- 
chaycoclia, south of the Cerro de Pasco. From the south 
comes the Catonga or A^Jurimac, already swollen in its 
upper reaches by numerous tributaries, such as the 
Tmribolamha, the Pacliachaca, Pampas, and Pulperia, all 
flowing, like the Maranon, in deep, narrow, rocky beds. 
The Pachachaca is spanned by a fine stone bridge dating 
from Spanish times, while the Pampas and Apurimac 
are crossed by the so-called mimhres, — aerial suspension- 
bridges waving to and fro with every breath of wind. 

From Lake Chinchaycocha issues the Pio Jaiija or 
MantarOy which winds in a singularly tortuous channel, 
here and there doubling upon itself in its struggles to 
escape from the entanglements of the sierras to its 
junction witli the Apurimac. Between the lake and this 
point there is a total fall over endless gorges and rapids 
of no less than 12,000 feet (13,420 to 1420). At the 
confluence the united stream takes the name of Ene, 
which after its union with the Perene becomes the 
I'am'bo as far as its confluence with the south-eastern 
system, where the united waters, here not more than 
860 feet above sea-level, form the Ucayali properly so 
called. 

In its course of several hundred miles through the 
montaha to the Maranon below the mouth of the Hual- 
laga, the Ucayali has a total incline of not more than 
540 feet (860 to 320). Hence in its lower course it 
flows with an extremely sluggish current between low 
winding banks, developing, like the Amazon itself, in- 
numerable side-channels, backwaters, and spacious lagoons, 
alternately flooded or left dry with the periodical in- 
undations and subsidences. In its low^er reaches the 
Ucayali is joined by only one important afiiuent, the 
already described Pachitea. 



200 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

The Huallaga and Javari 

Although several hundred miles long, the Huallaga 
is almost an insignificant stream compared with the 
Maranon and the Ucayali, between which it flows in a 
nearly parallel course to its junction with the former 
below the mouth of the Pastasa. It is also of far less 
economic importance, being so obstructed by pongos that, 
according to Eaimondi, it cannot be safely navigated by 
steamers beyond Laguna, about 2 8 miles above its mouth. 
Light craft ascend at high water as far as Tingo Maria, 
330 miles higher up. 

Still less important is the Javari, which joins the 
Amazon below Tabatinga, and for most of its course forma 
the political boundary towards Brazil. 

Pacific Drainage 

There is no room for the development of large rivers 
on the relatively narrow strip of seaboard, which is, 
moreover, comprised for the most part within the rainless 
zone. During the greater part of the year the fluvial 
beds are mere quehradas, that is, waterless ravines, like 
the wadys of Arabia, with a little moisture below the 
surface and subject to periodical freshets. Of these 
intermittent coast-streams the most copious appears to 
be the Huaraz, which traverses the long, narrow, and 
fertile valley known as the Callejon dc Huaraz between 
the Cordilleras Negra and Nevada. Issuing from the 
little Lake Conococha (12,940 feet), the Huaraz rushes 
down a precipitous incline to its junction with the Chu- 
quicara coming from the opposite direction. Below the 
confluence the united stream turns abruptly to the left, 
forcing a passage through the Cordillera Negra to the 



PERU 201 

coast zone, where it takes the name of Santa, from the 
town near which it enters the Pacific after a rapid course 
of about 240 miles. South of the Santa follow the 
Rimac, which gives its name to Lima} capital of Peru, 
the GJmnchanga, lea, Grande, Yauca, Ocona, Tamho, Ylo, 
and others, not one of which is perennial or navigable at 
any time. 

Lacustrine Basins — Lake Titicaca 

The term coclia, that is, "lake," which forms an 
element in so many geographical names, attests the 
presence on the plateau and its slopes of numerous lacus- 
trine basins, such as Ghinchaycocha in the Junin district, 
one of the sources of the Ucayali ; Parinacocha, Ghina- 
cocha, Cahallococha, Suachacocha, Huascacocha, Orcococlia, 
and others, mostly mere upland tarns of small size. But 
on the south-east frontier stretches the vast closed basin 
of Titicaca, which, however, belongs almost more to 
Bolivia than to Peru. 

Titicaca, which is incomparably the largest body of 
fresh water in the southern continent, being surpassed in 
the New World only by the great lakes of North 
America, forms an irregular oval, disposed in the same 
direction from south-east to north-west as all the great 
Peruvian ranges, and divided into two very unequal 
secondary basins by the two peninsulas of Gopacahana 
and Tiguina. It has an extreme length of 130 miles, 
with a mean breadth of 44 miles, and a total area of 
3300 square miles. Its present altitude, which slightly 
varies with the seasons, ranges from about 12,200 to 

^ By normal interchange of r and I Rimac became Limac, and by loss 
of c Lima. The word in Quichna means the "Speaker," in reference to a 
temple which formerly stood on its banks and was famous for its oracular 
utterances. 



202 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

12,220 feet. But it formerly stood much higher, and 
then discharged eastwards to the Amazon basin. At 
present it has no seaward outflow, but sends its overflow 
through the Desaguadero emissary, 160 miles long, to 
the swampy and saline Lake AuUagas, which appears to 
be itself a closed basin. At least there is but one per- 
ceptible outlet, and that too small to carry off all the 
superfluous water, so that the excess must either be dis- 
charged by some underground channel or else lost by 
evaporation. Owing to its great altitude Titicaca, which 
has a depth in places of over 700 feet, presents a some- 
what dreary aspect, its treeless shores fringed with a 
scant and stunted vegetation, and its shelving margin 
overgrown with tall rushes. Formerly its icy waters 
were enlivened only by balsas with reed sails, but since 
the opening of the railway through Arequipa to the 
Pacific coast, Puno maintains a number of steamers on 
the lake, besides a flotilla of balsas, which are made of 
reeds firmly lashed together, and propelled by reed sails. 



Climate 

In Peru the three natural regions of the montana, 
the plateau, and the seaboard have each its special 
climate, while the higher crests penetrate into the frigid 
zone. The trade-winds, which in all the equatorial 
regions of the New World set steadily from east to west, 
sweep up the great valley of the Amazon, checked by no 
obstacle until they strike against the eastern slopes of 
the Andes. Here the moisture-bearing clouds discharge 
most of their contents in the form both of rain and snow, 
and in their further progress across the plateau to the 
Western Cordilleras the w^arm humid Atlantic currents 
assume more and more the character of cold dry winds, 



PERU 203 

which blow away over the Pacific without contributing a 
drop of rain to the western slopes and coast-lands. But 
although a regular shower is here tlie rarest of phenomena, 
a little moisture in the form of dense fog or vapour helps 
to nourish the scanty vegetation during the winter season 
from May to December. The garuas, as these vapours 
are called, seldom rise higher than about 1300 feet on 
the Pacific slopes, where the transition in some places is 
quite abrupt from the lower foggy to the higher rainy 
zone. On these coast-lands the temperature is moderated 
both by the marine breezes and by Humboldt's cold 
marine current, which here sets steadily from south t»> 
north, and is many degrees cooler than the surrounding 
waters. Thanks to these combined influences, the normal 
temperature of Lima near 12° S. lat. is only about 68° 
Fahr. At Nauta it rises to 77°, and falls with the 
increasing altitude to 60° at Cuzco and 40° at Cerro 
de Pasco. 

Despite the relatively moderate mean temperature 
all the low-lying coast-lands are exposed to the ravages of 
yellow fever. Here also the Creoles, or whites of pure 
Spanish stock, appear to be scarcely yet acclimatised. 
There is little if any natural increase, owing to the 
excessive mortality of the children, who are subject to 
convulsions and to the so-called " seven-days' sickness," 
which attacks new-born infants and is always fatal. 
Ague, dy sentry, and liver affections also prevail in the 
seaboard, and typhus and typhoid fever in the montaiia, 
while the uplands suffer especially from the somewhat 
mysterious soroche. This strange disorder, which is due 
to the rarefaction of the atmosphere at great elevations, 
assumes different forms in different places, but is never 
fatal. 



204 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TPvAVEL 

Flora 

Thanks to the immense diversity of its soil and climate, 
combined with the varying aspects and altitudes of the 
land, the floras of all the zones, from the frigid to the 
torrid, are represented in Peru. Here the exuberant 
tropical forests of the hot and abundantly watered 
montana are succeeded in the more elevated valleys by 
the useful plants of the temperate and sub-tropical 
regions, and above these follow the herbaceous and 
scrubby growths of the elevated steppe and alpine slopes. 
In some districts we pass from sugar, cacao, or coffee 
plantations through banana groves to waving fields of 
maize, wheat, or barley, to orchards with all the fruits of 
the temperate zone, and to open, grassy plains roamed 
by horned cattle and flocks of the native alpaca and 
llama. Above the range of the cacao (2000 feet) the 
coffee shrub (4000), the sugar-cane and nopal (4300), the 
potato, European beans and cereals yield excellent 
crops, while the vine, introduced at an early date, 
thrives well in the volcanic Moquegua district on the 
south-west coast. 

A highly characteristic member of the Peruvian 
vegetable kingdom is the so-called tamai caspi or " rain- 
tree," which in the Moyobamba district grows to a height 
of about 60 feet. It takes its name from the remark- 
able property which it possesses of absorbing the humidity 
of the atmosphere in such abundance that the foliage 
keeps continually dripping even in the driest weather. 
This property is not quite analogous to that of the 
" pitcher-plant " of Madagascar, which does not appear to 
distil the moisture, V)ut merely to collect the rain as it 
falls in the large cavities at the junction of the branches 
w"ith the stem. 



PERU 205 



Fauna 



Of the large mammals the most characteristic, as well 
as the most useful, is the " American camel," of which 
there are four distinct varieties- — the llama, vicuna, 
alpaca, and guanaco (huanaco). The llama, which thrives 
on the coarse herbage of the puna region, where other 
herbivorous animals w^ould perish of hunger, had already 
been domesticated at a remote period as a beast of 
burden by the Quichuas. Hence it is no longer found 
in the wild state. When properly trained and well fed, 
the llama carries a load of 60 to 70, or even 75 pounds, 
and of its wool is ^voven a stout, serviceable cloth, while 
in some districts its droppings (taquia) are the only 
available fuel. The llama is not descended from the 
guanaco, as was formerly supposed, but is certainly a 
distinct and smaller species. Since the introduction of 
the European horse, ass, and mule, the llama is less used 
as a beast of burden, especially in the mines, and is now- 
bred chiefly for its wool, which varies greatly in quality. 
In this respect the fleece of the alpaca is much finer and 
of more uniform texture, hence is largely imported into 
Britain ; even the animal itself has been recently intro- 
duced both into England and Ireland. 

Although now confined to the Andean uplands, all 
these members of the camel family ranged formerly not 
only into Brazil and the Argentine pampas, but also into 
ISTorth America, and the fossil remains of closely-allied 
forms are found in the Tertiary deposits of all these 
regions. 

A curiosity of the snake world is the calainbo, a 
species of boa constrictor, which the natives have succeeded 
in domesticating. These large reptiles are trained like 
watch -dogs to protect gardens and other enclosures from 



206 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

depredators, and they become so attached to the place 
where they have been brought up that it is tound 
impossible to remove them elsewhere. Many parts of 
the neighbouring ocean teem with marine life and 
aquatic birds almost to an incredible extent. 



Inhabitants — The Cultured Peoples — The Yuncas 

There is good reason to believe that in pre-Columbian 
times Peru was much more thickly peopled than at 
present. The early writers assign a population of from 
ten to twelve millions to the empire of the Incas, and 
even after the massacres of Almagro, Pizarro, and their 
followers, the same region is stated to have still had as 
many as eight million inhabitants in 1580, or about 
two millions more than at present. 

From remote times the great bulk of these popula- 
tions had been constituted in settled communities, with 
political and social institutions sufficiently advanced to 
justify their claim to be regarded as civilised peoples. 

Amongst these peoples, who belonged to at least 
two distinct races — the Quichua-Aymara of the plateau, 
and the Yunca of the Pacific seaboard — three distinct 
civilisations had been developed in three cultural 
centres : Chimu of the Yuncas, in the present district of 
Trujillo on the coast ; Tiahuanaco of the so-called 
Aymaras, about the southern shores of Lake Titicaca ; 
and Cuzeo of the Quichuas, in the present department 
of that name. But some time before the advent of the 
whites the first two had been absorbed in the third, so 
that the Conquistadores found the whole region from 
the equator to Chile, and from the Amazonian slopes to 
the Pacific, constituted in a single political state — the 
empire of the Incas, that is, of the dominant branch of 



PERU 207 

the Quichua nation. In later times the term " Inca " 
acquired a somewhat restricted meaning, as the name of 
a royal family or dynasty. But it is now generally 
admitted that the Incas were originally a tribe of 
Quichuan stock, who rose to power in the Cuzco district 
under their chief Manco-Capac, " first of the Incas," 
early in the eleventh century. It should also be explained 
that the other terms — Yunca, Aymara, and Quichua itself 
— are aU misnomers, although now too firmly established 
to be set aside. In the Quichua language "Yunca" 
simply means hot lowlands, while " Chimu," also applied 
to the race, was merely the name of their chief city near 
Trujillo, so that the true name of this mysterious people 
is lost. They have themselves been long assimilated to 
their Quichua conquerors, who even planted colonies in 
their territory, as was their wont. But their language, 
which was called Mochica, and was radically distinct from 
Quichua, has fortunately been preserved in a grammar 
published in 1644 by F. de la Carrera, a native of the 
country. 

It is from this source, as well as from the character 
of their monuments, that the Yuncas are known to have 
been a distinct people, and their culture independently 
developed in pre-Inca times. Their empire extended for 
over 600 miles along the coast, and a vast space was 
occupied by their capital, Chimu, which was captured 
and destroyed by the Inca, Yupanqui. Tlie ruins of this 
great city extend from the Monte Capana southwards to 
the Ptio Moche, covering an area of nearly fifteen miles in 
this direction, and from five to six east and west. " In 
every direction, for an extent of several leagues, long 
lines of massive walls, liuacas, palaces, aqueducts, 
reservoirs of water and granaries can be made out. 
Everything proves the power and wealth of a people, the 



208 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

very name of whom has remained uncertain." ^ Of these 
ruins the largest, as well as the most characteristic, are 
the truncated pyramids here called huacas, or burying- 
places, one of which stands on a base 580 feet square, 
and is still 150 feet high. Larger still is the " Temple 
of the Sun," at the village of Moche, which is a rect- 
angular structure 800 by 470 feet, 200 feet high, and 
covering an area of over 7 acres. Monuments of this 
type occur nowhere else in South America, and from 
their resemblance to the Mexican teocalli some archaeolo- 
gists have inferred that the Yunca culture was of Toltec 
origin. But the Toltecs are now believed to have been 
a Maya people, and the Yunca language bears no kind 
of resemblance to Maya, or to any other North American 
tongue. 

The Aymaras 

Before their conquest by Mayta-Capac, the people 
now called " Aymaras " appear to have had no collective 
name, but were known as Collets, from the tribe on the 
north side of Titicaca, which was the first met by the 
Incas when they penetrated into this lacustrine basin. 
After the conquest the whole region was partly resettled 
in the usual way by families drawn from nearly all the 
royal tribes of Peru. One of these were the Aymaras, 
who founded new homes in the territory of the Lupacas, 
a Colla people dwelling on the west side of the lake, 
where after the Spanish conquest the Jesuits established 
a mission in 1570. These Quichuan settlers w^ere thus 
mistaken for a Colla tribe, and the term " Aymara " 
transferred from an obscure Inca clan to the whole of 
the Colla nation. The error was perpetuated v.'hen 
the same name was given to the local dialect in 

^ M. de Nadaillac, Pre-Ristoric America, p. 395. 



PERU 



209 



which H grainmer was afterwards published (Eome, 1603), 
but wliicli was not " Aymara " (Quichua) but the Lupaca 
(CoUa) language, remotely akin to Quichua. 

Eeference has already been made (Chap. III.) to the 
ethnical and cultural relations of the Ayniaras to their 
(j)uichuan conquerors and " younger brothers."' Their 




THE GKEAT UOUi'aVAY, TIAHUANACU. 

civilisation, as represented by the wonderful monuments 
of Titicaca, on the whole the most stupendous ruins in 
the Xew "World, is supposed to have been independently 
developed on the spot, and in any case had its begin- 
nings, like that of the Yuncas, in pre-Inca times. Its 
distinctive character is shown not only by the still 
standing megaliths, unlike anything else in America, but 
also by the huge monolithic doorways, unlike anything 
else in the whole world, as well as by many of the 
VOL. I P 



210 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

details — symbolical carvings, bas-reliefs, colossal statues, 
exquisitely polished blocks, and numerous other features, 
as described and illustrated in Stiibel and Uhle's 
sumptuous work. The astonishment inspired by these 
remains, which are scattered over a wide area, is greatly 
increased when it is considered that they were erected 
on what is now a bleak treeless plateau, 12,000 feet 
above sea-level, and that the blocks, some weighing from 
100 to 150 tons, had to be transported many miles 
either up steep inclines or else across numerous inlets 
along the shores of the lake. It would appear from the 
many highly polished slabs lying tiat on the ground, 
as if ready for the mason, that all formed part of a 
general design rivalling in magnitude those of the 
largest Egyptian temples, but never completed. The 
great doorway, hewn in a single piece, weighing over 12 
tons, and decorated with the image of Viracocha, tutelar 
deity of the Aymaras, is the supreme triumph of the 
native American architecture. " Its significance exceeds 
everything hitherto discovered in Peru, and it ranks 
amongst the most remarkable remains of pre-Columbian 
America." ^ 

Other structures, which are also of veiy great interest, 
being intimately associated with the most hallowed 
memories and traditions of the Quichua-Aymara peojDles, 
are found in the islands of the neighbouring lake. 
Specially remarkable is that of Titicaca, which gives its 
name to the whole basin. 



The Quichuas— Empire of the Incas 

After the subjugation of the Aymaras all their 
sacred legends and traditions — older and more venerated 

^ Stuhel und Uhle, Text, p. 20. 



PERU 



211 



than those of the Quiclivias themselves — wouhl appear 
to have been appropriated or adopted by the Incas. 
Thus may be explained the curious fact that Titicaca, 
which lay in Aymaraland and was unknown to the early 
Incas, became nevertheless associated with the myth of 
their divine origin. Here, according to some versions, 
the sun reappeared after a total eclipse of several days ; 
here were born Manco-Capac and Oello, children of the 
Sun, and from Titicaca they issued fortli to found their 
empire, not on the shores of the lake, but away to the 
north in the heart of Peru. 

Certain it is that the earlier and more genuine 
tradition points, not to the Cave of Titicaca, but to that 
of Paucaritainbo, about the centre of the national domain, 
as the true cradle of the Inca race. Attempts were 
afterwards made to reconcile those contradictions, and 
one explanation was that, after issuing from Titicaca, the 
first Inca and his wife descended into the earth and 
reappeared through the cave at Paccaritambo. The 
dynasty comprised altogether fourteen Incas (four more 
or less mythical and ten historical), whose names and 
dates, as recorded by Garcilasso de la Vega, himself of 
Inca descent, are as under : — 





A.D. 




A.l). 


Manco-Capac 


. 1021 


Vira-Cocha . 


. 1289 


Sinchi-Rocca 


. 1062 


Pacacutec 


. 1340 


Lloque-Yupanqui 


. 1091 


Yupanqui 


. 1400 


Mayta-Capac 


. 1126 


Tupac- Yupanqui . 


. 1439 


Capac-Yupanqui . 


. 1156 


Huayna-Capac 


. 1475 


Rocca . 


. 1197 


Huascar 


. 1520? 


Yahuar-Huaccac . 


. 1 249 


Atahualpa . 


. 1532 



Under Huayna-Capac, greutest of the Incas, and the 
last who ruled over an undivided empire, the ^vhole 
territory comprised four great divisions, which corre- 
sponded with the four points of the compass, and were 



212 COMPEXDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

connected with the capital, Cuzco, by four main high- 
ways radiating north to Quitu, south to Collasuyu 
(Aymaraland), east to Antisuyu, and west to the Yunca 
country (Pacific Coast-lands). In the central and more 
important district dwelt the dominant race, of whom 
there were six distinct branches: (1) The Tncas, between 
the Eios Apurimac and Paucartampu, with the inter- 
vening valley of the Vilcamayo ; (2) The Canas, between 
the Vilcanota Pass and the Incas in the same valley ; 
(3) The Quichuas, whose name was later extended to the 
whole nation, but whose proper territory lay between the 
Kios Apurimac and Pampas ; (4) The Chancas, between 
Huanta and the Eio Pampas; (5) The Huancas, in the 
Jauja valley and thence to the Cerro de Pasco ; (6) The 
Rucanas, on both slopes of the Western Cordillera. 
Whether the large nation of the Chinchas, whose territory 
(Chinchasuyu) lay north of Cuzco, belonged originally to 
the same connection, seems doubtful. But in any case 
they shared the destinies of all the Quichua groups, who 
after long struggles for the supremacy were reduced and 
merged in a single political system by the royal Inca 
tribe. 

Reference is often made to a particular Inca language, 
and a few specimens are given. But these all belong to 
the common Quichuan tongue, which obtained a wide 
range under the sway of the Incas, is still the chief 
medium of intercourse throughout the Ecuadorean and 
Peruvian uplands, and has also spread to many of the 
semi-civilised tribes along the banks of the Amazonian 
affluents. It is a highly polysynthetic form of speech, 
extremely flexible, rich, and sonorous, at least in the 
northern districts, where the gutturals are softened and 
harsh combinations avoided. 

Although there is no native graphic system, the- 



PERU 213 

Quichuans possessed a somewhat copious oral literature, 




A* 



IXCA INDIAN. 



much of which has heen perpetuated since written form 
was given to the language hj the publication of Holguin's 



214 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

Grammar in 1607. Besides the well-known drama of 
Ollantay, the collections comprise numerous popular songs 
or ballads, love ditties, elegies, and the like, all in a 
tender, melancholy strain. 



The Uncultured Peoples — The Antis 

The other aborigines, most of whom were never 
brought under Quichuan influences, and still dwell along 
the river banks or in the wilds of the Montana, are 
officially grouped in two social classes — the Tndios m msos 
or Gristianos, who are generally baptized, somtwhat 
settled, speak or understand Quichuan, and live on 
friendly terms with the civilised communities, and the 
Indios hravos, the wild tribes, still mostly independent, 
and in the same state of nature as their forefathers in 
pre-Columbian and pre-Inca times. 

In the Upper Ucayali basin the most numerous and 
powerful of these savage nations are still the Antis, 
who gave their name to the eastern province of Antisuyu, 
and are referred to in the above-mentioned Quichua 
drama of Ollantay. The Gam^jas, as they are also called, 
have always been dreaded for their ferocious character, 
and are even said to have ' been cannibals. They wear 
a long robe witli holes for the head and arms, allow 
their long, lank hair to hang down over their shoulders, 
and are specially distinguished by the beak of a toucan 
on a bunch of feathers worn as an ornament round the 
neck. 

The Chunchos 

Closely allied to the Antis are their neighbours, the 
equally wild Ghunchos, who roam the forests east of 
Cuzco and Tarnia. Here they form three somewhat 



PERU 



215 



distinct groups — the IfuaxhijJai/rls, Tuyumris, and Siri- 
iieyris-^who were said to have sprung from the royal 
Inca tribe, and in any case were for a time hrought 
under (^uichuan rule by the Inca Yupanqui. Other 
groups, Itelonging to the same widespread family, range 
into the province of Caravaya, and some have been met 




A CHUNCHO FUOM THE MONTANA. 

in the forests of Paucartampu, where they live in 
well-constructed huts with walls 6 feet high, and good 
pointed straw roofs, generally perched on rising grounds. 
Socially the various Chuncho trihes present consideral^le 
differences, some being pure savages, who roam the forests 
in quest of game, have no religion whatever, bury the 
dead in the huts, and are generally fierce, cruel, and 



216 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 



untamable, while others are advanced enough to cultivate 
maize, yams, plantains, and pine-apx^les, and erect fixed 
abodes large enough to accommodate twenty persons. 



Topography— Railway Enterprise 

When it is considered that centuries before the dis- 
covery Peru was constituted in an organised state of vast 
size, that in colonial times it formed the chief Spanish 
Viceroyalty in the southern continent, and that since 
then immense sums of money have been lavished in 
developing its natural resources, surprise may well be 
expressed at the small number of urban centres that have 
sprung up in this region. The subjoined table of the 
chief places on the Pacific and Atlantic slopes shows 
that there are only six towns in the whole country with 
more than 10,000 inhabitants: — 



Pacific Slope 


Atlantic 


Slope 


Lima 


104,000 


Cuzco . 


. 22,000 


Callao 


35,000 


Ayacucho . 


9,000 


Arequipa . 


.34,000 


Iquitos 


8,000 


Chiclayo , 


11,000 


Cajaniarca . 


7,000 


Monsefu . 


11,000 


Cerro de Pasco 


. 7,000 


Trujillo , 


8,000 


Huanuco 


. 5,000 



On the seaboard north of Lima the most important 
place is TrnJiUo, founded by Pizarro in 1535 at the 
mouth of the Pdo de Moche, amid the ruins of Grand 
Chirnu, probably the largest city in pre-Columbian 
America. Owing partly to the absence of natural 
havens on this seaboard, exposed to heavy surf, none of 
the coast towns north of Callao have acquired great 
commercial importance. Trujillo is connected with the 
port of Salaverri, formerly Garita de Moche, by a coast- 
line running north to Chicama and Ascope through an 



PERU 



217 



arid district, which has heeii restored to fertility by 
repairing the old Chimu canals. Here is still to be seen 
a vast reservoir built of solid concrete, and capable of 
holding nearly 1800 million cubit feet. 

A few miles farther north stands the port of 
Pacasmayo, for which brighter prospects seem reserved. 
Here is the seaward terminus of a line which at present 
runs a short distance inland to Guadalupe and Chepen, 
but is eventually to be continued through Cajamarca 
and over the Cordilleras down to the Amazon valley. 
At a time when money was being lavished on these 
ambitious railway schemes, this line was spoken of 
merely as the first section of a trans-continental trunk 
line between the two oceans. Chimhote, on El Eerrol 
Bay, south of the Eio Santa, is the starting-point of 
another project known as the Huaraz line, which has 
already been carried up the Huaylas valley to Becuay, 
centre of a mining district 11,000 feet above sea-level. 

This line traverses the department of Ancachs, which 
takes its name from the little Ancachs rivulet, where the 
insurgents gained a decisive victory over the Spanish 
forces. The Ancachs joins the right bank of the Eio 
Santa just below Yungay, at the foot of the Cerro de 
Huascan. A little lower down is the town of Caraz, 
noted for its quicksilver and coal mines, and for a 
peculiar variety of the potato, wdiich ripens in three 
months. Below Caraz follows Huaylas, which gives its 
name to the upper course of the Eio Santa. All these 
places are stations on the Huaraz railway, which follows all 
the windings of the fluvial valley to its source at Eecuay. 

Below Chimbote, the coast town of Huaura, at the 
mouth of the Eio Supe, is the present terminus of a coast- 
line which runs by Huaiicho, Chancay, and Ancon to 
Lima. During the progress of the works on this line 



218 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

a cvitting in the dunes at Ancon revealed an extensive 
old burial-place, from which have been recovered great 
quantities of objects illustrating almost all branches of 
the Peruvian arts and industries. These objects — pottery, 
textile fabrics, ornaments, arms, utensils, and implements 
of all kinds — had been deposited- with the dead, and, 
thanks to the extremely dry climate, were found for the 
most part in a good state of preservation. The dead 
themselves were mummified and wrapped in packs enclos- 
ing one or more bodies, or even several members of a 
family, and so arranged as to present the rough appear- 
ance of a single human being with a false head, but very 
broad and without any attempt at .reproducing the 
contour-lines of the figure. The outer wraps varied in 
quality with the social position of the departed, some 
being extremely rich, others plain and coarse as sack- 
cloth, as it was inside these wraps that were found most 
of the articles stowed away with the dead to supply them 
with all their requirements in the after life.^ 

After the overthrow of the Incas, it was at once seen 
that the seat of the new government would have to be 
removed from their inland capital, Cuzco, to some point 
on the seaboard affording easy communication with the 
metropolis. In the absence of any good havens, the 
most favourable site seemed to be the open roadstead 
at the mouth of the little river Eimac, which was 
sheltered by the island of San Lorenzo and a projecting 
tongue of land from the west and south-w^est winds. 
Here was the seaport of Callao, which now became the 
outlet of the new capital Lima, founded in 1535 by 
Pizarro on the left bank of the river three or four miles 
from the coast. 

1 W. Reiss and A. Stubel, Peruvian Antiqidtics. The Necropolis of 
Ancon in Peru, English edition by A. H. Keane, 1881-83. 



PERU 



219 



In anticipation of a greatness destined never to be 
realised, the " City of Kings," as it was called, was laid 
out on a large scale. But the " Empire City of the New 
World " has disappointed the hopes of its inhalutants, 
and is already outstripped in wealth, trade, and popula- 
tion by Valparaiso, Buenos Ayres, Rio de Janeiro, and 
a few other places in South America alone. 




Lima stands almost at the very foot of the Coast 
Itange, whose advanced spurs rise immediately above the 
Hat roofs of the houses. From these heights a com- 
manding view is afforded of the city, laid out like a 
cliess-board, diversified chiefly by numerous churches, 
conspicuous amongst which is the fine old Spanish cathe- 
dral on the " Plaza Mayor." In this bird's-eye view are 
also comprised the often really magnificent inner courts 
«jf the more aristocratic quarters. But what imparts to 
Lima quite a characteristic aspect are the countless little 



220 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRArHY AND TRAVEL 

square structures on the flat roofs, provided with trap 
windows, which serve the double purpose of ventilating 
and lighting the interior. 

Scarcely a drop of rain falls for years together, 
although now and then the saturated atmosphere pre- 
cipitates a heavy dew sufficient to moisten the surface 
of the ground. 

In the Plaza Mayor, which, as is usual in South 
American cities, forms a perfect square, stands the 
cathedral, flanked with two lofty towers. The centre of 
the square is laid out as a public garden, ornamented 
with fountains, statues, and marble seats, and enclosed 
on three sides by covered colonnades, beneath which 
wares of all kinds are exposed for sale. Amongst the 
scientific and literary institutions are the University 
of San Marcos, the oldest in South America, several 
libraries and museums, which were despoiled of some 
of their treasures when the place was occupied by the 
Chilians during the war of 1879-81. 

The monotonous appearance of the straight lines of 
streets is relieved by the varied forms of the projecting 
balconies, by the elegant warehouses mostly in the hands 
of strangers, and the numerous tiendas or retail-shops, 
chiefly owned by Italians, of whom there are many 
thousands in Lima. There are also a good many Germans 
and French, the latter mostly hotel -keepers, perfumers, 
and owners of coffee-houses and fashionable establish- 
ments. The English and Americans, on the contrary, 
are found chiefly in Callao, where the shipping interests 
are centred. 

This flourishing seaport, which is now provided with 
repairing docks and a new harbour 50 acres in extent, 
does fully one-half of the foreign trade of the country. 
It is connected with the capital by shaded avenues, and 



PERU 



221 



two railways seven miles long. One of these forms a 
seaward extension of the famous Oroya line, which is 
justly regarded as one of the greatest engineering 
triumphs of modern times. In the short distance of 
106 miles it ascends the western slopes from sea-level 
at Callao to a height of 15,665 feet at the culminating 
point on the crest of the Cordillera. From this point, 
the highest yet reached by any railway, the eastern 




CALLAO UAKllUlK. 



section, 30 miles long, falls with a gradient of 120 feet 
per mile down to a level of 12,178 at its present 
terminus, Oroya, on the Eio Jauja in the Amazon basin. 
The total length is thus 136 miles ; but the line is to be 
continued eastwards through Tarma and Chanchamayo, 
down to some point about the head of the navigation of 
the Maraiion. 

The works, everywhere interrupted by the Chilian 
war, have since been slowly resumed at several points. 



222 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

An English company has undertaken to complete the 
whole of the Central Peruvian system, on which 
£36,000,000 have already been expended. From 
Oroya, the central station, several lines are to be con- 
structed to Cerro de Pasco, the chief silver -mining 
centre in Peru, and to other places on the plateau, so 
as to effect junctions northwards with the Pacasmayo- 
Cajamarca line, and southwards through Tonquini, 
Ayaciwho, and Cuzco with Sicuani, present terminus of 
the Mollendo-Puno system. Even before the war the 
main section of this system had already been completed 
from Mollendo on the coast, north of Arica, to Puno on 
the north-west side of Lake Titicaca, climbing the 
Cordillera to an extreme altitude of 14,640 feet at 
Crucero Alto. Prom Puno two branches are to run 
south to Bolivia and north to the Oroya system. Since 
the war the northern branch has been carried as far as 
Sicuani, and is advancing in the direction of Cuzco, 
while a beginning has been made with the section 
between Ayacucho and Tonquini. 

Even when all these sections are constructed, other 
branches will be needed to connect the Pacific termini of 
the three trunk lines — Pacasmayo, Callao, and Mollendo 
— with the Amazonian affluents, at points where they 
become navigable below the falls and rapids. One of 
these necessary connections, already begun, is to run 
from Oroya through Tarma down the Perene valley to 
the Ucayali ; while another, branching from Ayacucho 
northwards, down the ]\Iantaro valley to the Apurimac- 
Tambo confluence, has at least been surveyed. Certainly 
many more millions will be required to carry out the 
whole scheme, and until this is done the magnificent 
works already executed can never pay. At present the 
transport of goods between the Pacific and Amazonian 



PERU 



223 



basins varies according to circumstances from about 
£35 to £70, or even £80 per ton, an almost prohibitive 
charge for a scanty population laden with other heavy- 
burdens. 

Of the above-mentioned upland towns, whose pros- 
pects are dependent on the development of the Central 




BRIDGE OX THE OROYA RAILWAY. 



Eailway system, the most noteworthy is Cuzco, ancient 
capital of the Incas, and still a place of some importance. 
It stands at an elevation of 11,400 feet on two torrents 
flowing to the Upper Huilcamayo, some distance below 
Sicuani, northernmost station of the Mollendo-Puno 
railway. The walls of the houses and temples of the 
ancient city are of such massive masonry that they 



224 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

remain intact. Upon them have been erected most of 
the churches, convents, and private mansions of the new 
town. The names of the four quarters, designated from 
the four points of the compass, and set apart by the 
Incas for their subjects from the northern, southern, 
eastern, and western provinces, are now disused. The 
great central square has been' divided by houses into 
two smaller squares, which are flanked by some of the 
finest buildings of the Spanish city. 

Conspicuous amongst these are the cathedral and 
several other churches, whose handsome exteriors are 
not unworthy of the ancient city. The cathedral 
replaces the palace of one of the Incas. The church 
of San Domingo is on the site of the old Temple of the 
Sun, where stood a solid gold statue of the great orb, 
tutelar deity of the Incas. On a neighbouring height, 
laid out in terraces, still stand the massive ruins of the 
Colcampata palace attributed to Manco-Capac, founder 
of the dynasty. Above all rises the famous citadel of 
Sacsah'ua77ian, which is said by Garcilasso de la Vega to 
have been constructed by the luca, Viracocha, but is in 
reality much older. After a stubborn resistance it was 
captured by Fernando Pizarro in 1532. Cuzco may be 
quickened into new life as soon as the railway is 
completed, by which direct access will be afforded 
through Puno and Arequipa to the coast at Mollendo. 

Arequipa, the first important station above Mollendo, 
from which it is distant 100 miles, is noted for its 
earthquakes. Standing at an elevation of 7600 feet 
under the shadow of Misti, in a volcanic district subject 
to constant disturbances, this place has suffered much 
from earthquakes, by which it was half ruined in 1600, 
and again in 1868. Villa Hermosa, as it was called 
by its founder, Francisco Pizarro in 1540, has claims to 



PERU 225 

distinction, and its inhabitants perhaps justly regard 
themselves as the most enterprising and intelligent 
citizens of the republic. Besides the already mentioned 
observatory on Carmen Alto, a meteorological station has 
been established on the neighbouring Mount Chachani 
at an altitude of 16,280 feet, which is more than 2000 
feet higher than that of Pike's Peak, Colorado, the next 
highest on the globe. 

In the rainless zone between Callao and Mollendo 
some shelter is afforded by the Chincha Islands to the 
open roadstead of Pisco, which has been chosen as the 
starting-point of another Andean railway. A first 
section, 45 miles long, has already been constructed 
across the arid Pampa de Chunchanga district to lea, on 
the right bank of the river of like name. Here it stops 
for the present at the foot of the hills, but is eventually 
to be continued up the slopes to the district about the 
sources of the rivers lea and Chunchanga (Pisco), which 
has long been celebrated for its rich silver ores. At the 
head of the Chunchanga gorge stands the now almost 
deserted station of Gastrovireina, so named in honour of 
the wife of the Viceroy, Marquis of Canete, at a time 
when the mining industry was at the height of its 
prosperity. Of her it is related that a noble and 
wealthy Indian lady, to whose child the Vice-Queen 
stood godmother at this place, paved with silver slabs 
the path which she had to take from her residence to 
the church in order to attend the christening. But this 
display of wealth was followed by a dire calamity — the 
collapse of the richest galleries, crushing over 120 of 
the underground toilers. Since then most of the mines 
have been abandoned, and will probably not again be 
opened until the completion of the projected railway 
with the coast. 

VOL. I Q 



226 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 



111 the district between Mollendo and the old Chilian 
frontier two otlier lines were undertaken during the 
period when railway speculation was at fever heat. The 
northernmost of these was carried from 1U> (Ylo), a few 
miles inland, to Moquegua in the direction of Lake 
Titicaca, and there it is likely to stop for many years to 
come. Better prospects may perhaps be in store for the 
second, which runs from the important frontier town of 
Arica to Tacna in the same direction, and also shares in 




the busy life of the neighbouring Chilian nitrate in- 
dustry. Arica, which was restored by Chile to Peru in 
1898, marks the point where the main Andean axis 
makes a sharp bend to the north-west. It is exposed 
not only to underground disturbances, but also to con- 
current seacjuakes, when the sea first retires to a con- 
siderable distance from the shore, and then rushes back 
with a force that nothing can resist. In 1868 a large 
vessel was torn from its anchorage and borne on the 
crest of a huge wave more than a mile inland. Then in 



PERU 227 

1877 the process was reversed, the sanie vessel being 
carried half the distance back to its natural element, 
without any loss of life to a little community of several 
families who had in the interval established themselves 
in the hull. 

Natural Resources — Vegetable Products • 

Hitherto the almost inexhaustible natural resources 
of the alluvial Amazonian woodlands have been scarcely 
more than tapped. Eeference has already been made to 
the valuable species of chinch ona obtained some years 
ago from this region. Tlie working of the best kind of 
caoutchouc is now a considerable industry. Foremost 
amongst the other products of the Montaiia is the 
much-prized coca {Erijthroxylon coca), the tonic virtues 
of which have been placed beyond doubt by modern 
research. As a stimulant it is much used by the 
natives, who chew the leaves mixed with the ashes of 
Ghenoiiodiurii qiiinoa, and are thus enal>led to undergo 
great tatigue on a scanty supply of food. 

Gruano — Minerals 

Formerly Peru possessed great sources of wealth in 
its guano and nitrate deposits, Ijoth of which are of 
extreme importance as fertilisers. But the guano-beds 
are already nearly exhausted, while the nitrate fields have 
passed into the hands of Chile since the war of 1879-81. 
The richest guano deposits were those of the Chinclias, a 
dreary arid group of rocky islets in the neighbourhood of 
I'isco. The beds were worked from the surface down- 
wards, the material being removed in layers, and con- 
veyed on trams either to the molo or wharf or else to 
the edge of the cliff and shot over into large barges, and 



228 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

thence transferred to the vessels engaged in the trade. 
In 1873 the export from the Chinchas amounted to 
100,000 tons, and the deposits on the Guanajje and 
Macahi islands were also being worked. Operations were 
later extended to the Lolos and Viejas groups in Inde- 
pendencia Bay, to the Lobillo and Huanillo islets in 
Chiapana Bay, and to others at Punta Alba and Pabellon 
de Pica. All these smaller beds, which had been seized 
by the Chilians, have now been delivered over to the 
Peruvian Corporation, which has been constituted to 
develop the resources of the country for the mutual 
benefit of the Peruvian Government and its foreign 
(chiefly English) creditors. 

Even the mineral industry, of which Peru was formerly 
a chief centre, has greatly fallen off, and many of the 
gold and silver mines have been closed, or yield but poor 
returns. In 1897 the mining claims of all kinds — the 
precious metals, copper, lead, zinc, quicksilver, sulphur, 
salt, coal, and petroleum- — numbered 3475 ; yet the total 
value of the minerals yearly exported now rarely exceeds 
£700,000 or £800,000, while in 1896 the total silver 
production fell short of 3,400,000 oz. Hence the under- 
ground treasures of the country, which undoubtedly still 
exist in great abundance and variety, have at least at 
present more of a historical than of a practical interest. 
Humboldt has estimated the actual quantity of tlie 
precious metals extracted from the Peruvian mines under 
the viceroyalty down to the year 1803 at £246,000,000, 
and since then the mint of Lima alone issued silver 
pieces to the value of £3,500,000 between the years 
1826 and 1833. This was independent not only of the 
Cuzco mintage, but also of the silver ingots and ores, 
large quantities of which were exported during the same 
period. Cerro de Pasco, centre of a rich argentiferous 



PERU 229 

district in the department of Junin, has also its smelting 
works, where the silver ores are dealt with, and stamped 
bars or ingots issued to the yearly value of about £300,000. 
But Peru has long ceased to hold the first place as a 
centre of the mining industry, and in this respect is 
already surpassed not only by the United States, Australia, 
and South Africa, but even by the neighbouring republics 
of Chile and Bolivia. 

But, even after most of the mines had for one reason 
or another been closed, and when the guano-beds began 
to o-ive out, it was discovered that the State possessed a 
still scarcely touched source of immense wealth in the 
nitrate and other mineral deposits of the southern 
province of Tarapaca. On the maps this district figures 
as part of the " Desert of Atacama," an expression which 
also comprises the former Bolivian coast district of Anto- 
fagasta, together with Tocopilla, Talcal, and other tracts 
in North Chile. The whole territory is unquestionably 
on the surface a desert in the strict sense of the term — 
a dreary, treeless waste, for long ages forming part of the 
South American arid zone. But below the surface pro- 
bably no other region of the same extent possesses a 
greater abundance of useful mineral products. Besides 
the nitrates of soda and some other rich fertilisers slowly 
accumulated beneath those rainless skies, here are con- 
centrated in the relatively narrow space between the sea- 
shore and the first Andean foothills great stores of borax, 
iodine, coal, and rock-salt, besides an extraordinary variety 
of minerals, such as gold, silver, copper, iron, lead, nickel, 
and cobalt. In the northern part of the Peruvian coast 
another source of wealth has been discovered in the almost 
inexhaustible supplies of petroleum in the desert, 9 miles 
in extent, between the rivers Chira and Tumbez. This 
discovery goes far to make up for the loss of Tarapaca. 



230 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Causes and Results of the Chilian War 

But scarcely had the Peruvian Government laid hands 
on these reserves of wealth, in order to replenish the 
national coffers exhausted by reckless extravagance and 
speculation, when frontier questions and tariff difficulties 
were renewed or created by the two conterminous States, 
also eager to secure as large a share as possible of the 
lately discovered treasures. At that time Bolivia had 
access to the sea through the district of Antofagasta, 
wedoed in between South Peru and Xorth Chile. But 
the southern boundary had fluctuated since 1861 between 
23° and 24° S. lat., claimed respectively by Chile and 
Bolivia, and under the new conditions a degree more 
or less now became a matter of national importance. 
Meantime Chilian speculators had poured into the debat- 
able territory, and to the boundary question was added 
the tariff dispute, when the Bolivian Custom-House officers 
endeavoured to levy increased export duties on the 
nitrates shipped by a Chilian company at the port of 
Antofagasta. Thus arose the war of 1879-81, in which 
Peru sided with Bolivia, and which resulted in the 
cession by these States of the mineral districts of Tarapaca 
and Antofagasta to the victorious Chilians. Thus also 
Bolivia became, at least temporarily, a land-locked Power, 
while Peru, half-ruined by a disastrous war, lost the 
prospective means of meeting her ever-increasing liabilities 
towards her foreign (almost exclusively British) creditors. 

The Peruvian Corporation 

A compromise had therefore to be effected, and thus 
was created the so-called " Peruvian Corporation," to 
which were transferred a large portion of the national 



PERU 231 

assets, to be developed by them in the mutual interest of 
the State and of the bond-holders. Thus, in virtue of 
the Grace -Donoughmore contract, ratified in January 
1890, Peru was released from all responsibility in respect 
of the public debt, which, with arrears of unpaid interest, 
amounted at that date to £23,000,000, while all the 
railways, guano deposits, mines, and lands of the State 
were ceded to the bond-holders for a term of sixty-six 
years. The expectation that by that time all liabilities 
would be cleared off has scarcely been borne out so far. 
Several important details of the agreement still remain 
unsettled, and at a meeting of the Corporation in London 
in January 1899 it was stated that the yearly revenue 
was stationary at about £140,000, just enough to pay 
the reduced interest upon the debentures. 



Administration 

Peru, in colonial times the most important of the 
Spanish South American Viceroyalties, proclaimed her 
independence in 1821, and after a severe struggle, con- 
tinued for nearly four years, vindicated the claim in 
1824. The present Constitution dates from October 
1856, and, as revised, from November 1860. The 
legislative power is vested in a Senate and a House 
of Ptepresentatives, the former composed of provincial 
deputies in the proportion of one for every 30,000 in- 
habitants, the latter of members returned by the electoral 
colleges of the provinces of each department, generally at 
the rate of two for each province. 

The executive is entrusted to a President and two 
Vice-Presidents, elected for four years, and assisted by six 
Cabinet Ministers, dependent on the President. There is 
little fault to find witli the general scheme of adminis- 



232 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

tration, which since the Chilian war has worked fairly 
well. Although the Peruvian Corporation exercises no 
o-overning functions, it tends indirectly to strengthen the 
hands of the authorities, by stimulating local enterprise, 
and thus fostering those industrial habits which make 
for peace. 

Although politically all classes are equal, religious 
freedom is barred by the terms of the Constitution, which 
not only recognises Catholicism as the State religion, but 
also in principle forbids the public exercise of any other 
form of worship. Practically, however, a measm-e of 
tolerance is extended to the Protestant communities 
(chiefly English and American), which have churches in 
Callao and Lima. 

Elementary instruction is compulsory, and also free in 
the municipal schools. Even the high schools main- 
tained by the State in the departmental capitals are in 
great measure free, although a small fee is charged in 
some places. There are universities at Cuzco and 
Arequipa subordinate to that of Lima, which is the oldest 
in the New World, its charter having been granted by 
Charles V. The " TJniversidad de San Marcos," as this 
central establishment is called, has a somewhat com- 
plete curriculum, including faculties of theology, juris- 
prudence, medicine, political and applied sciences. 

Since the war the land forces have been reduced to 
about 5000 men of all arms, and the navy to a single 
cruiser, a few small steamers and a training ship. 



To face page 232. 



CHAPTEE VIII 



BOLIVIA 



Boundaries, Extent, Population — Physical Features — The Coast Range 
and the Cordillera Real — The Cordillera de Cochabamba and the 
Eastern Sierras — The Yungas Zone — Hydrography — The Titicaca 
Closed Lacustrine Basin — -The Madre de Dios and Beni Rivers — The 
Rio Grande and Mamore — The Mojos Lacustrine Depression — The 
Pilcomayo — Climate — Flora — Fauna — Inhabitants— The Mojos— The 
Chiquitos — The Chiriguanos— The Bolivians — Historic Retrospect- 
Topography — Railway Projects — Resources — Minerals — Vegetable 
Products — Communications — Administration. 



Boundaries, Extent, Population 

Landwards Bolivia is conterminous with as many as five 
different States — -Peru and Chile on the west, Aroentina 
and Paraguay on the south, and Brazil on the north and 
east sides. But the boundaries are almost everywhere 
purely conventional lines, drawn with little regard to the 
physical features of the land, and leaving several frontier 
questions still unsettled. After the war of 1879-81 the 
littoral district of Antofagasta, nearly 30,000 square miles 
in extent, was retained by Chile, and for a time Bolivia 
was reduced to the position of an inland power. Here, by 
the treaty of 1884, everything south of 23° S. lat. was 
surrendered in perpetuity, while the section of the 
Atacama desert between that parallel and the Eio Loa, 



284 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

former frontier towards Peru, was first mortgaged to 
Chile, and then in 1895 ceded absolutely, in exchange for 
the little seaport of Mejillones del Norte between Iquique 
and Pisagua in the old Peruvian province of Tarapaca. 
Access to the Pacific was also once more secured by the 
grant of a narrow strip running through the same 
province to Mejillones. But against this concession Peru 
has entered a formal protest, as being against her interests, 
so that the arrangement can scarcely be considered final. 
In the interior the boundary towards Chile was also 
modified in 1884, and instead of following the crest of 
the Coast Eange it has been deflected a little to the east 
as far south as the Licancaur volcano, beyond which 
point it trends slightly south by east to the frontier. 
Towards Peru, Bolivia claims a contested line drawn from 
the head of the Eio Yavary to that of the Amarumayo 
(Madre de Dios), thence to and across Lake Titicaca to the 
outlet of the Desaguadero, and from that point south-west 
to the Eio Mauri, which is followed to the province of 
Tacna, now held by Chile. But Peru makes the line 
coincide with the course of the Beni from its source to 
the Madeira. The Brazilian boundary, as fixed in 1875, 
runs in the north from the head of the Yavary to the 
Beni -Madeira confluence, and thence along the Eios 
Mamore, Guapore (Itenez), and Verde to the Cerro de 
Cuatro Hermanos. Here it trends east to the head of 
the Eio San Matias, which is fallowed to Lake Uberaba, 
from which point it is drawn at a little distance from, 
but parallel with, the right bank of the Paraguay to 
Puerto Pacheco, and thence along the river itself to 
Paraguay. With this State the boundary, settled in 
1894, forms a straight line between the left bank of the 
Pilcomayo at 22° S. lat. and the right bank of the 
Paraguay at Fort Olimpo (21° S.). 



BOLIVIA 235 

By the same Convention of 1894 the free navigation 
of the main stream was granted to Bolivia, which thus 
secured an outlet to the Atlantic by the Parana, that 
river being also free to all flags. By the agreement of 
1888 the boundary towards Argentina coincides with 22° 
S. lat. between the Eios Pilcomayo and Bermejo, follows 
this river for some distance to the south-west, and then 
runs west towards the Sierra de Victoria, and round the 
foot of the Sierra de Santa Catalina to the right bank 
of the San Jvian, which is followed southwards to the 
Chilian frontier. 

Within these extremely arbitrary limits Bolivia has a 
superficial area of 567,000 square miles, with a popula- 
tion, according to the official estimates of 1890-98, of 
about 2,000,000, distributed over the eight departments 
as under : — 



Departments. 


Area in sq. miles. 


Population 


La Paz (le Ayacucho . 


171,200 


593,779 


Potosi ... 


52,084 


360,400 


Oruro 


21,331 


189,840 


Sucre (Chuquisaca) 


39,871 


286,710 


Cochabamba 


21,417 


360,220 


Beni .... 


100,551 


26,750 


Santa-Cruz de la Sierra 


126,305 


112,200 


Tarija 


34,599 


89,650 


Tota 


1 . 567,360 


2,019,549 



Great uncertainty prevails both in respect of these 
figures, which are raised by some authorities to 2,270,000 
and reduced by others to less than 1,500,000, and also 
regarding the constituent elements of the inhabitants. 
These are usually grouped under three broad divisions, 
— -full -blood aborigines, numbering from 200,000 
to 300,000 ; mestizoes, but with a slight European 
strain, leading sedentary lives in Christian communities, 



236 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

speaking native languages, and numbering probably about 
1,000,000; lastly, the so-called luhites, that is the civilised 
ruling class, with a more decided strain of European blood, 
of Spanish speech, though often familiar with Ayniara, 
concentrated chiefly in the urban, agricultural, and mining 
districts of the uplands (Bolivia proper), and numbering 
perhaps 700,000 or 800,000. 

It is easy to understand that, under a weak or dis- 
orderly administration such as has for the most part 
prevailed in Bolivia, heterogeneous populations of this 
sort, with such a large preponderance of the Indian 
element, must constitute a standing menace to the 
stability of the State itself. Hence it is that in Bolivia 
internal disorders often assume a more serious aspect than 
elsewhere. During the last revolution, which broke out 
in ISTovember 1898, fears were entertained of a general 
rising of the natives, and such an event — always possible 
— might lead to the intervention of the neighbouring 
Powers, if not to the dismemlierment of the republic. 



Physical Features — The Coast Eange and the Cordillera Real 

That central section of the Andean uplands which is 
comprised within Bolivian territory lies roughly between 
10° S. lat. and the Tropic of Capricorn, about midway 
between the parallels of the Amazon and Plate estuaries, 
and over against the most elevated parts of the Brazilian 
highlands. It has thus for long ages been somewhat 
less exposed than the northern and southern sections to 
the direct action of the moisture-bearing Atlantic winds, 
and has consequently suffered less from the erosive effects 
of the running waters, which have caused such a pro- 
digious extent of denudation along the eastern slopes of 
the Peruvian Ecuadorean and Chilian Andes. 



BOLIVIA 237 

The result is that the pristine configuration of the 
whole system has been better preserved in Bolivia than 
elsewhere. Here the Andean approach nearest to the 
Brazilian uplands, and here is developed a far greater 
■breadth of elevated plateau formations than in any other 
part of the southern continent. The two main ranges, 
that is to say, the Coast or Western Cordillera, and the 
Andes properly so called, which in Chile and Argentina 
are separated only by a relatively narrow tableland, 
broaden out in Bolivia to such an extent as to enclose 
one of the most spacious and elevated plateaux on the globe. 
Moreover both chains, but especially the Andes, throw off 
a number of secondary spurs and offshoots and even dis- 
tinct sierras in the direction of the east, by which the 
Bolivian system is brought at some points within 
measureable distance of the Brazilian uplands. 

To the Coast Eange, which is now included in Chilian 
territory, belong several spurs and lateral ridges, with 
some lofty summits, such as Taxiora or Chipicani, Sajama 
(21,000 feet), Sapaya, Tua, and Viscachillas, all lying 
well witliin the Bolivian frontier. But most of the 
highest peaks occur in the Andes proper, which traverse 
the whole region for about 560 miles in the normal 
direction from south-east to north-west. Like the 
Ecuadorean and Peruvian systems, the Bolivian Andes 
have also their converging " knot," which here takes the 
name of Apoloiamha, and is formed by the junction of 
the Carabaya range, with the crests rising to heights of 
16,000 and 17,000 feet on the north-east side of Lake 
Titicaca. 

The Cordillera Real (" Eoyal Cordillera "), as the 
section of the Andes is called which skirts the east side 
of Titicaca, presents a great diversity of aspects in its 
numerous sharp peaks, conical, dome-like or bell-shaped 



238 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

summits, penetrating iu many places above the snow-line, 
which here stands at about 17,300 feet above sea-level. 
In this section are grouped most of the giants of the 
Bolivian highlands, such as the triple-crested lllampu 
or Sorata, probable calminating point of the southern 




ILLIMANI. 



Continent (23,500 feet?), and its proud rival Illima^ii 
(22,500), which also terminates in three snowy peaks. 
The " Pic de Paris," one of the lower crests of Sorata, 
was scaled by Wiener in 1877, and in September 
1898 Sir Martin Conway for the first time ascended 
the highest point of Illimani. " The last part of the 
ascent was made by a long ice-wall, and across a huge 



BOLIVIA 239 

snow-plateau, leading finally up a snow-ridge to the 
summit." ^ 

Illimani, which is unsurpassed for its imposing 




GORGK XEAR THE CUZANACO MINE, ILLIMAM. 

grandeur and varied aspects, rises close to La Paz above 
the profound gorge through which the Titicaca basin 
formerly sent its overflow to the inland sea. Beyond 

^ Geograph. Jour., October 189S, p. 417. 



240 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

this cleft the Cordillera Eeal is continued for a distance 
of over 200 miles to the Cochahamha knot, which is 
dominated by the 6'e?T0 Timari, 16,200 feet high. 

Here the Cordillera bifurcates, throwing off to the left 
an irregular eastern branch, while the main chain takes 
a southern trend parallel with the Chilian Coast Eange. 
This southern section, which again breaks into secondary- 
ridges or isolated masses, is surmounted by several lofty 
summits, such as Michaga (17,400 feet), Cuzco (17,930), 
and (east of the main axis) Chorolque (18,480), Guadalupe 
(18,900), Todos Santos (19,400), and Lqiez (19,680), 
culminating point of South Bolivia. Lipez gives its 
name to a transverse ridge, which closes the southern 
extremity of the Titicaca-Aullagas depression, and thus 
corresponds with the Vilcanota knot on the north side 
of the same lacustrine basin. 



The Cordillera de Cochahamba and the Eastern 
Sierras 

The region stretching east of the Cerro Tunari in the 
direction of the plains presents an extremely rugged 
aspect, although falling to a much lower level than the 
great central plateau. In this " Bolivian Switzerland," 
as it has been called, the highest point appears to be the 
Cerro de Potosi (15,400 feet), formerly a chief centre of 
the silver-mining industry. Amid a chaos of precipitous 
heights, detached crests and masses, thrown together 
without any apparent order, it seems difficult to detect 
any general plan. It results, however, from the rough 
survey salready made, that the jagged sierras and short 
ridges are mainly disposed in the same direction as the 
two border ranges- — the northern Cordillera de Cocha- 
bamba, which trends east and south-east, and the eastern 



BOLIVIA 241 

Misiones chain, whose outer escarpments rise like an 
impassable rampart above the alluvial plains. 

But the Andean system proper is still continued in 
the direction of the Brazilian uplands by the Sierra 
Chamaya, the Sierra Manaya skirting the right bank of 
the Beni, the Cordillera de los Mosetenes, and several 
other so-called " Little Andes " ramifying eastwards from 
the Cochabamba heights. Still farther east the plains 
about the southernmost sources of the Madeira are 
diversified by a number of isolated gneiss masses, which 
appear to have formerly belonged to the older Brazilian 
system, from which they have been detached by the 
erosive action of running waters. From the Indians 
inhabiting their valleys they take the collective name of 
the Chiquitos group, and are of some geographical interest, 
because they stand at the nearest converging point of the 
Andean and Brazilian orographic systems. 

The Yungas Zone 

This Chiquito district properly forms part of the 
Yungas, which is the same word as the Peruvian Ymicas. 
But whereas in Peru the Yuncas comprise the hot dry 
coast-lands, the Bolivian Yungas, like the Peruvian Mon- 
tana, is applied to all the hot, moist eastern slopes of the 
Cordilleras merging in the wooded Amazonian plains. Both 
terms are also extended to the natives of the respective 
regions, and to that extent have acquired a somewhat 
vague ethnical significance. Notwithstanding the op- 
pressive heat and humidity, and the rank vegetation 
of this trackless forest zone, the slopes and even the 
plains watered by the Amazonian tributaries are said 
to be singularly free from malarious fevers and 
epidemics. 

VOL. I K 



242 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGIiAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Hydrography 

In Bolivia the drainage system is less complicated 
than might be supposed from the large number of 
streams traversing the Yungas zone in various directions. 
Since the recent political changes there is no outflow 
towards the Pacific Ocean, while the Alta Planicie 
Central, that is, the " High Central Tableland," as the 
great plateau is called, forms a closed basin with no 
visible outlet, and is moreover a somewhat arid region, 
with few and unimportant perennial streams. Hence it 
is that all the rivers descending from the eastern slopes 
find their way to the Atlantic Ocean either through the 
Amazon or the Plate estuaries. It is further to be noted 
that two only belong to the Plate system — the Parapiti 
and the Pilcomayo — and that all the Amazonian affluents 
reach the main stream not through independent channels, 
but indirectly through the Madeira, largest of its southern 
tributaries. It thus appears that, from the hydrographic 
standpoint, the greater part of Bolivia is comprised 
within the Madeira basin, whose three great western 
head-streams — the Madre de Dios, Beni, and Eio G-rande — 
collect all the surface-waters of the Yunoas district. 



The Titicaca closed Lacustrine Basin 

To the same fluvial system also formerly belonged the 
now closed lacustrine basin, which is still flooded in the 
north and centre by the already described lakes Titicaca 
and AuUagas. This vast depression, which has a mean 
breadth of 8 miles between the two main ranges, extends 
for a total length of 5 miles from the Vilcanota to the 
Lipez knot, and has an area of perhaps over 40,000 
square miles. Hence when flooded it must have been the 



BOLIVIA 



243 



largest lake, as well as the chief reservoir of the largest 
river in the world. South of the Aullayas lauooii 
nothing remains of the old lake except some saline 
marshy tracts, or " pampas," as they are here called, 
which occupy the lowest parts of the tableland, and are 
fed by the Laca Ahuvra, flowing partly above and partly 
under ground, south-westwards from AuUagas. Such 
are the Pamixt de Coijxisa, and still farther south the 




J-AKE TITICACA. 



Pioivpa de Emfpeza, which according to the seasons are 
alternately salt lagoons and dry or swampy plains. The 
surface consists generally of a thick crust of }ture 
crystallised and dazzling white common salt overlying an 
underground lake, of which nothing can be seen except 
where salt-works have been opened by the natives. 

In the rainy season these pampas are often flooded to 
a depth of 2 or 3 feet, and are then quite impassable, 
but at other times may be safely crossed by avoiding 



244 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TKAVEL 

the deeper marshy parts. The whole of this southern 
district, which lies at a considerably lower level than 
Aullagas and about 1000 feet below Titicaca, is much 
drier than the northern section of the tableland, and, 
but for the difference of level, might be regarded as an 
inland extension of the neighbouring Atacama desert. 
In fact the district is often locally called the Desierto de 
Lipez, from the transverse ridge enclosing the plateau on 
the south. 

The Madre de Dios and Beni Rivers 

At present the divide between Titicaca and the 
Amazon system stands 520 feet above the lake at the 
La Paz gorge, through which the lacustrine basin 
formerly found an outlet to the plains. But the great 
river still draws some of its supplies from the eastern 
slope of this divide, where the La Paz torrent rises on 
the flanks of Illimani, and is soon after joined by the 
Cotocayes, the Altamachi, and several other mountain 
streams to form the Beni, one of the chief branches of 
the Madeira. After a winding course of several hundred 
miles through the Yungas district the Beni is joined on 
its left bank below Carmen by the much longer and 
more copious Madre de Dios, whose farthest head-stream, 
the Inamhari, rises not far from the source of the Madidi, 
one of the Beni affluents, and after skirting the escarp- 
ments of the Carabaya range in Peru for some distance 
in the direction of the north-west, as if to join the Eio 
Purus, bends sharply round to the north-east. In fact 
the Inamhari was long supposed to be the upper course 
of the Purus, although the Incas had sent expeditions 
down its banks and appear to have known that the 
Mayu-Tata or Amaru-Mayo (" Snake river "), as they 
called the Madre de Dios, really formed part of the Beni 



BOLIVIA 245 

system. But this fact was afterwards forgotten till the 
year 18 60, when Faustino Maldonado floated down the 
Madre de Dios to the Beni and the Madeira, where he 
and some of his companions perished in the cataracts. 

The doubts, which even still continued to prevail as 
to the true relations, were not finally cleared up till 
1884, when Armienta ascended from the Madeira and 
Beni up the Madre de Dios to the point where it passes 
from Peru into Bolivian territory, and found it a placid 
navigable stream free of all obstructions and about 550 
yards wide. At the Beni confluence, 20 miles above the 
Madeira, it is over 1200 yards wide, but a little lower 
down the navigation of the united stream, which retains 
the name of the Beni, is interrupted by precipitous falls 
30 feet high. 

The Rio Grande and Mamor6 

Far more extensive than the Beni is the Mamore 
fluvial system, which with its widely-ramifying branches 
fills up the whole of the alluvial plains between the 
Bolivian and Brazilian uplands, communicates during 
the floods with the upper affluents of the Paraguay, and 
with some of its head-waters penetrates far into the 
Cochabamba and Matto C4rosso ranges. Thus the Bio 
Grande {Guapay), which by many geographers is regarded 
as the true upper course of the Madeira itself, has its 
source far to the south not a great way from Oruro on 
the plateau between the Cordillera Eeal and the Cocha- 
bamba range. After traversing the whole of the plateau 
in a south-easterly direction, it sweeps round with a 
magnificent bend to the north and north by west to the 
Mojos plains, where there is a great meeting of the 
waters locally known as the Junta de los Bios. 

Here the Eio Grande is usually stated to take the 



246 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

name of the Mamore, which it retains for the rest of its 
course to the junction of the Itenez {Guapord) from Brazil 
to form the Madeira. From this it might be supposed 
that the Mamore is merely the lower course of the Eio 
Grande, whereas it is an independent river which con- 
verges with the Eio Grande, and its tributary the Piray 
or Sard, jointly with the Yapacani, the Chimori, and the 
Chapari at or about the Junta de los Eios, above the old 
mission station of Loreto. All these affluents, which are 
navigable by canoes nearly to their sources at the foot of 
the Cochabamba range, merge at the Junta in a single 
stream, which retains the name of the Mamore to the 
Guapore confluence, although the Eio Grande is much the 
longer branch, but so shallow that it is quite useless for 
navigation. The true Junta, described as a magnificent 
meeting of waters, is at the confluence of the Mamore, here 
500 yards wide, with the Sara, the name given by the 
natives to the united Eio Grande and Piray, the latter 
flowing from the Santa Cruz district and joining the left 
bank of the Eio Grande about 40 leagues above the Junta. 
All these rivers are continually shifting their beds in 
the forest region through which they flow. " They 
undermine the banks on one side, which, falling away, 
form the numerous curves on the convex side of which 
the mud and sand brought down by the current is 
deposited, and playas (shoals) and banks are formed on 
which a forest grows in course of time. The river on 
the concave side of the curve is continually causing the 
trees of the terra fir ma to fall and obstruct the water- 
way ; a barricade or palisada is formed, the river then 
returns in exceptionally high floods to its old course on 
the convex shore, bursting through the playas and sand- 
banks, and so the ever-recurring changes of the river- 
course continue. In illustration of this, I saw on the 



BOLIVIA 247 

Eiver Chapari a place where the current was breaking 
down a bank that was apparently terra firma, and had 
trees growing on it that were of great age. At the foot 
of this bank, and under some 15 feet of earth, was a 
deposit of timber, blackened, and, in fact, almost car- 
bonised by time and pressure of the superincumbent 
earth. Eroni the manner in wdiich these logs were 
deposited, one above the other, it was evident that they 
formed part of a huge collection of drift-wood, such as 
may often be seen collected together in many parts of 
the rivers." ^ 

The Mojos Lacustrine Depression 

Above the Guapore confluence, where the united 
stream takes the name of the Madeira, the Mamore with 
its ramifying affluents traverses that part of the Yungas 
zone which reaches its lowest level in the Mojos plains, 
that is to say, the bed of the former inland sea, where 
it was contracted to a relatively narrow sound between 
the Andean and the Brazilian highlands. Here the 
divide between the Amazon and Plate basins is still so 
low that the waters of the head-streams are inter- 
mingled during the rainy season, and after the subsidence 
a number of shallow depressions either remain permanently 
flooded or else form saline morasses, like the Coipasa and 
Empeza pampas in the southern part of the Alta Planicie 
Central. 

These lacustrine formations are numerous, especially 
in the level region between the middle courses of the 
Beni and the Mamore, where the Boguaguado lagoon is 
said to cover a space of several hundred square miles 
even in the dry season. Owing to the same general lie 
of the land the Bio Para'piti, which rises at the base of 

1 E. D. Mathews, Up the Amazon and Madeira Rivers, p. 137. 



248 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the outer escarpments south of the Eio Grande bend, 
winds with such a sluggish current eastwards in the 
direction of the Paraguay that it seems at times to be 
lost in marshy tracts, draining both to the Amazon and 
Plate basins. 

The Pilcomayo 

Somewhat more decided, though still in places scarcely 
perceptible, is the incline of the Bio Filcomayo, which, 
although it has its source on the uplands close to that of 
the Ptio Grande, belongs entirely, to the Plate system. 
After forcing its way through several intervening ridges 
to its junction with the Pilaya above San Francisco, it 
flows across the Gran Chaco plains in a normal south- 
easterly direction to Lambare, on the left bank of the Eio 
Paraguay six miles below Ascencion, capital of Paraguay. 
The numerous attempts made to determine the true 
character of this great fluvial artery, which seemed to 
possess such vital economic importance for the neigh- 
bouring states of Bolivia, Argentina, and Paraguay, have 
mostly been thwarted, as much by the impracticable nature 
of the sluggish stream itself, as by the hostility of the 
fierce Toba natives inhabiting its densely wooded and in 
places half- submerged banks. 

One of the most successful expeditions was that 
carried out in 1890 by Lieut. 0. J. Storm, who, however, 
was unable to ascend much more than 300 miles above 
the confluence, in a steamer built for the purpose and 
drawing only 8 inches when loaded. " The river," this 
explorer tells us, " has an average width of 30 yards, 
and its banks are 4 to 5 yards high, covered in some 
parts with dense forests, while in others the aspect 
changes into vast plains dotted with palms. There also 
exist extensive swamps. The depth is very variable. 



BOLIVIA 249 

and entirely dependent on the rainfall. The course of 
the Pileomayo is entirely tortuous, with very short and 
sudden bends, making it difficult even for a small steamer 
to wind her way through the overhanging trees from both 
sides, and especially the numerous raigones (" snags ") offer 
great obstacles and even dangers for the navigation. In 
some parts the raigones are so abundant that the river- 
bed at low vfater looks like a forest of dead trees. We 
had to stop at every moment to cut our way through, 
and at times the men were scarcely out of water the 
whole day. It is all hard wood, and even the best axes 
break." ' 

The main result of the expedition was that the 
Pilcomayo, which has no regular or periodical rise or fall, 
but only sudden freshets caused by sudden downpours, " is 
not navigable for commercial purposes " {ih.). Its upper 
course alone lies within Bolivian territory, beyond which 
it serves for about 800 miles as the boundary between 
Argentina and Paraguay. 

Climate 

As in the other Andean regions the climates are 
determined far more by elevation than by latitude ; in 
other words, they are disposed vertically rather than 
horizontally. Thus, whatever the distance from the 
equator, the mean annual temperature, which in the 
Yungas zone stands at about 74° F. up to 2000 feet, 
falls to 66° on the Cochabamba plateau (8000 to 8500 
feet), and to 50° at La Paz and on the central tableland 
(11,900 to 12,500 feet). Higher up, the slopes and 
crests of both Cordilleras penetrate into an Arctic region, 
which is uninhabitable even where not clothed with a 

^ Geograph. Jour., January 1896, p. 84. 



250 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

snowy mantle throughout the year. The severity of the 
dry whiter season, from April to August, is somewhat 
tempered on the Alta Planicie by the moderating action 
of the great lake. But the most favoured zone, where 
all the large towns and most of the settled populations 
are concentrated, lies about the lower slopes of the Cor- 
dillera Eeal and the Cochabamba plateau, between the 
altitudes of 8000 and 10,000 feet, with a mean annual 
temperature oscillating between 50° and 60° F. 

This region is exposed to the dry south-east trade 
winds, which have lost most of their moisture before 
reaching the Bolivian uplands, and are followed by the 
intermittent rains prevailing throughout the wet summer 
season from November to February. But the rainfall is 
on the whole less copious than on the more northern 
slopes, which are exposed to the moist Atlantic winds 
sweeping up the Amazon valley, and perhaps to this 
cause, combined with the greater development of the 
plateau formation, Bolivia may be indebted for its general 
salubrity and relative immunity from epidemics, even on 
the low-lying Yungas zone. Here the Coni valley, which 
drains to the Chapari at the low level of about 950 feet 
above the sea, and is covered with a less dense and 
rank vegetation than the montana, enjoys a delightful 
climate, where mosquitoes and other insect pests are less 
troublesome, and " fever and ague are very little if at all 
known." ^ 

Still more favoured is the Cochabamba region, which 
" enjoys an almost perpetual summer, whilst the nights 
are pleasantly cool, and therefore invigorating to consti- 
tutions depressed by the humid heat of the Madeira and 
Amazon valleys. There seems to be little difference all 
the year round. Certain months have more rain than 

' Mathews, p. 186. 



BOLIVIA 251 

others, but. even then the rain only falls in the shape of 
good, heavy showers, lasting, perhaps, an hour or so, 
when the sun breaks out again. A thoroughly wet day 
is a great rarity in Cochabamba, although at higher and 
lower altitudes, in the same parallel of latitude, such days 
are of frequent occurrence, while the central plains of 
Bolivia seem to have just a desirable amount of lainfall 
and no more. Fever and ague are quite unknown, and 
if sanitary matters were attended to, Cochabamba might 
soon be free from diseases of any kind. But unfortunately 
at present such sicknesses as small-pox and scarlet fever 
are got rid of with difficulty, owing to the filthy habits 
of at least four-fifths of the natives, who seem to be quite 
without any notions of public cleanliness" (ih. p. 234). 

Flora 

But, if less abundant than in the north, the rainfall 
still amply suffices to sustain a vegetation which for 
exuberance and variety of forms is probably unsurpassed 
in any part of the world. Its luxuriance is mainly due 
to the natural fertility of the soil, while for the astonish- 
ing number of distinct species Bolivia has to thank its 
central position in the southern continent, which has 
enabled it to attract immigrants from the Peruvian, the 
Brazilian, and all the other surrounding vegetable zones. 
Vast forest tracts, abounding in cabinet and dye-woods, 
medicinal and other useful plants, are continuous along 
the lower slopes and at the foot of the outer Cordilleras, 
while some varieties of the ubiquitous palm family range 
to great heights on the flanks of the Cochabamba 
mountains. 

Amongst the numerous useful vegetable products of 
the Yungas district may be mentioned an excellent variety 



252 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

of chinchona, and the copal tree, with its easily extracted 
resin, by which the natives of the woodlands light up 
their habitations. Coffee also of prime quality here 
flourishes side hj side with rice, sugar-cane, pine-apples, 
and coca, which, as in Peru, is extensively used by the 
Indians of the uplands as a stimulant. The more open 
savannahs farther south and east yield abundance of the 
richest pasture, while European alimentary plants, such 
as wheat, barley, and pulse, are found associated with the 
indigenous maize and potatoes on the arable upland 
tracts. 

In the Mojos territory the old cocoa plantations, here 
called " chocolatales," which were laid out by the Indians 
under the guidance of the Jesuits 200 years ago, are stiU 
kept up in the Exaltacion district and other parts. But 
they are now claimed as Government property, and 
farmed out to speculators, who make good profits, as the 
plant needs very little attention, and thrives even if left 
to itself. The chocolate from these plantations is quite 
equal, if not even superior, to the highly-prized " Mera- 
villa " of Venezuela, and when the communications are 
improved will certainly form an important article of the 
export trade with Europe. 

On the uplands quinoa and potatoes are amongst the 
most valuable alimentary plants. Quinoa is a small 
grain about the size of millet, which, when boiled or 
soaked, yields a gelatinous substance forming the staple 
food of the Aymara Indians. Potatoes are largely con- 
sumed in the form of chvMo, that is, sliced and cut into 
cubes the size of dice and then exposed to the frosty 
nights till they acquire a dry corky appearance. In 
this state they keep any length of time, and are much 
used with clnqj^ (soup), although considered tasteless by 
most travellers. 



BOLIVIA 



253 



From maize is obtained the national drink, cJiicha, of 
which there are two varieties, chicha cocida (" boiled ") 
and mascada (" chewed "), a concoction prepared, likQ the 
Polynesian kava, by a process of mastication, and freely 
taken by everybody, from the president down to the 
humblest peasant. 

Fauna 

Bolivia, considering the rigorous climate, has no dearth 
of indigenous animals on its lofty plateaux. The llama, 




CAPYBARA. 



alpaca, vicuna, guanaco, chinchilla, viscacha, are far from 
exhausting the list. In the montana are the capybara, 
a large rodent, the peccary, tapir, and many other useful 
animals. Almost every form of South American bird-life 
is met in the woodlands or on the uplands, amongst them 
some lovely varieties of the humming-l)ird, frequenting the 
highest slopes of the Cerro de Potosi over 14,000 feet 



254 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

above sea-level. lu the Yungas district is met an in- 
digenous species of stork, locally called hata, which stands 
about 5 feet high, covers 8 feet 6 inches with its extended 
wings, and has a curiously up-turned black beak about a 
foot long. Its flesh makes excellent eating, although 
this is, perhaps, a point of little consequence in a country 
where nearly all beasts, birds, and fishes are indifferently 
consumed not only by the aborigines but also by many 
of the half-breeds. 

On the highlands the llama is used as a pack animal, 
and the alpaca for its wool. Both these valuable animals 
are domesticated. The vicuna is wild, and roams freely 
in herds of from four or five to forty or fifty, keeping 
mainly to the central plateau. Here the characteristic 
carrion birds are the condor, eagle, and vulture, which prey 
upon the mules and other animals falling exhausted along 
the caravan tracks. ''• Often, when riding over the Andes, a 
huge dark shadow comes suddenly over the path, and the 
traveller, looking upwards, sees the magnificent condor 
floating in the bright sunlight, and rising to his resting- 
place amongst the snow-clad peaks" {ib. p. 336). All 
share in the same feast, precedence being taken by the 
condor, who is followed in their turn by the eagle and 
the vulture.- 

Inhabitants— The Mojos 

In Bolivia the transitions between the different 
ethnical and cultural groups are perhaps less abrupt than 
in most other parts of Spanish America. The natives 
of the seaboard and of the uplands — Atacamenos, Aymaras, 
and Quichuas — had all been organised in settled com- 
munities by the conquering Incas, while the unreclaimed 
aborigines of the eastern slopes and plains appear for the 
most part to have always been farther removed from the 



150LIVIA 255 

savage state than the Chunchos and the other fierce wild 
tribes of the Peruvian montana. Even those who, like 
the Yuracar^s of the Mamore head -streams, are still 
called harharos, are "much quieter and more tractable 
than the mixed races of Brazil," and in fact are really 
mansos, that is, " tame," being called barbaros only 
" because they refuse to be baptized into the Eonian 
Catholic Church." ^ Soon after the Spanish conquest 
large numbers of the Yungas tribes proved highly 
susceptible to humanising influences, and readily grouped 
themselves in permanent and orderly communities round 
about the missionary stations along the banks of the Eios 
Beni, Mamore, Guapore, and their numerous affluents. 

Two of these groups — the Mojos and the Chiquitos — 
comprise each a great many separate tribes, speaking ten 
or twelve different languages, yet all living in perfect 
harmony and combining together for the common welfare. 

The Mojos, who give their name to the old lacustrine 
depression between the Beni and the Mamor^, had already 
voluntarily submitted to the Inca Yupanqui, and were 
afterwards gathered by the Jesuits into fifteen mission 
villages, where they still number about 30,000. 

Their Christianity, however, in which Catholic dogma 
plays a very subordinate part, is sometimes associated 
with some extremely rude and realistic observances. 
Indian dances are allowed, at certain feasts, to be intro- 
duced after the service of the mass. 

These Mojos Indians are amongst the most orderly, 
industrious, and intelligent inhabitants of the republic, 
although treated worse than slaves by their Bolivian 
masters. They are described as "a grave, sedate, and 
thoughtful people," good husbandmen, skilful in the 
use of the lasso, which they have adopted instead of the 

1 Mathews, pp. 81 and 174. 



256 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

bow and arrow, and are regarded as perhaps the most 
expert boatmen in the whole of the Amazonian region. 
They are met in this capacity at all the riverine ports as 
far as Manaos on the north side of the Amazon, and are 
everywhere highly esteemed and trusted by the white 
traders. Although their arithmetic gets no farther than 
the numerals 4 or 5, the Mojos are amongst the few 
South American peoples who were credited with a writing 
system, which, however, consisted of nothing more than 
a few simple strokes drawn on wooden tablets. 



The Chiquitos 

More rudimentary even than the Mojo numeral system 
is that of the Chiquitos, some of whom appear to have 
no terms for the ciphers beyond one} Yet they are a 
bright, intelligent people, more cheerful than the Mojos, 
and equally industrious. Their collective Spanish name, 
Chiquitos, meaning " Little Folk," does not refer directly 
to their stature (though that is short, averaging about 
5 feet or less), but to the circumstance that when the 
whites first invaded their territory they found the door- 
ways of the huts so very low that the natives who had 
fled to the woods were supposed to be dwarfs. 

The Chiquitos, who occupy the district about the 
head-waters of the Kio Guapore in Brazil, and parts of 
the province of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, in Bolivia, 
have developed a sort of communistic or co-operative 
system, which works better than similar systems in 
more civilised lands. The produce of their cotton and 
sugar-cane crops is sold for the benefit of the community, 

1 Even etama, the word used for one, really means "alone," one object 
taken apart from the rest (Dr. L. L. Conant, The Numeral Concept : Its 
Origin and Development, 1896V 



BOLIVIA 257 

and a fund is thus formed for the relief of the infirm and 
aged. For reducing the sugar they make their own 
copper boilers, and also ply several other trades, such as 
straw-plaiting, weaving, and dyeing. When they foncy 
striped trousers, rows of white and yellow cotton are 
planted, and when blue is fashionable, a row of indigo is 
added. Coffee, cacao, and vanilla are also grown, and 
the Chiquitos, who trouble themselves little about politics, 
may claim to rank amongst the most useful citizens of 
the adjacent republics. 

Their happy, light-hearted disposition, shown by a 
constant round of visits accompanied by much music and 
revelry, is all the more remarkable, since the position of 
their territory about the Spanish and Portuguese frontiers 
exposed them to endless troubles during the lawless times 
of the colonial regime. First attacked and butchered by 
the ferocious adventurer, Alvarez, surnamed Cabeza de 
Vaca (" Cow -Head"), they were next raided from the 
Portuguese side by the Paolistas in quest of slaves for 
the mines and plantations of Brazil, and then plundered 
from the opposite quarter by the Spanish traders of Santa 
Cruz de la Sierra. Even the Jesuits, who came to evan- 
gelise them in the seventeenth century, were accompanied 
by small-pox and other epidemics which threatened to 
exterminate the whole nation. Yet they still survive, to 
the number of certainly over 20,000, divided into as 
many as forty distinct tribes speaking about a dozen 
different languages. 

The Chiriguanos 

Still more numerous are the Chiriguanos, a large 
branch of the Guarani race, who have from remote times 
been separated by wide spaces from the kindred people 
of Brazil and Paraguay. A considerable section are 

VOL. I y 



Z0» COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

settled as nominal Christians in the stations along both 
sides of the Eio Grande. The bulk of the nation 
are still in the wild state, roaming the forests right up 
to the foot of the Bolivian Andes. But even these 
children of nature bear a good character, and have the 
reputation of being of industrious habits, and good stock- 
breeders. They also till the land in some districts, and 
even seek employment in various capacities amongst the 
settled populations. The Chiriguanos were formerly 
noted for their strict observance of the strange custom 
of the Couvade, which is prevalent amongst so many of 
the South American aborigines. 



The Bolivians — Historic Retrospect 

Of the civilised ruling classes, some are of pure Spanish 
descent, while many are Mestizoes. Their country, in 
colonial times, was the Presidency of Upper Peru or 
Charcas. 

Upper Peru was under the Peruvian Viceroyalty until 
1776, when it was transferred to Buenos Ayres. After 
the Independence it was formed into a separate republic 
with the name of Bolivia, in honour of Bolivar, the 
Colombian General. His lieutenant, General Sucre, was 
the first President, 1826-28. Santa-Cruz, a pure Indian, 
established a firm administration from 1829 to 1839. 
He was a man of undoubted ability and enlightened 
views. Unfortunately he was also ambitious, and his 
interference in the internal affairs of Peru in 1836 
ended Id irretrievable disaster. After his decisive 
victories over the Peruvian generals, Gamarra and 
Salaverry, he united the two republics in a confederacy 
based on an offensive and defensive alliance, which was 
aimed especially at the aggressive policy of Chile. 



BOLIVIA 259 

The challenge was accepted by that State, which 
invaded Peru, seized the capital, and not only over- 
threw Santa Cruz himself with great slaughter at the 
battle of Yungai in 1838, but also broke up the Con- 
federacy by sowing dissensions between the two allies. 
The tide of invasion was now directed against Bolivia, 
and although Gamarra was again defeated, Santa Cruz 
was not restored to power, because accused by his enemies 
of aiming at a dictatorship, or even at royalty itself 
Since the retirement of Santa Cruz, Ballivian (1841-47) 
and Linares (1857-61) have been enlightened rulers; 
and since 1880 four presidents have served their regular 
terms of four years. The best of these was General 
Campero, 1880-84. 



Topography — Railway Projects 

In 1828 the constitutional capital of Bolivia was 
declared to be Chuquisaca, or Sucre. The actual capital 
and centre of trade is La Paz. The subjoined table shows 
that there are other towns, with 10,000 inhabitants and 
upwards, nearly all situated either on the central plateau or 
in the healthy upland zone east of the Cordillera Pieal : — 



La Paz . . . 45,000 

Sucre . . . 26,000 

Cochabaniba . 25,000 

Potosi . . . 20,000 



Oruro . . . 15,000 

Santa Cruz . . 11,000 

Huanchaca . . 10,000 

Tarija . . . 10,000 



Of these places two only — Oruro and Huanchaca — 
stand on the central tableland, and these are consequently 
amongst the most elevated towns in Bolivia. Oruro, 
which figures largely in the local records, claimed to be, 
next to Potosi, the largest city in the whole of the present 
Bolivia during the seventeenth century, when the popula- 
tion approached 80,000. It stands at an altitude ot 



260 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

11,720 feet at the northern extremity of Lake Aullagas, 
not far from the now exhausted or abandoned silver- 
mines to which its prosperity was due. The neighbour- 
ing tin-mines are still worked, and the output has even 
been increased since the extension of the Huanchaca 
railway to Oruro. Huanchaca, till lately an obscure 
hamlet 13,500 feet above sea-level, lies due south of 
Oruro in a rich argentiferous district, overlooking the 
saline plains of the Pampa de Empeza. 

Mining operations have been greatly stimulated by 
the completion of the Chilian trunk line from Anto- 
fagasta on the coast to Huanchaca, and at present this 
district yields more silver ores than all the rest of 
Bolivia. The railway is eventually to be continued from 
Oruro along the western foot of the Cordillera Eeal and 
round the shores of Lake Titicaca to Puno, where a 
junction will be effected with the Central Peruvian 
system. 

On the eastern slope of the Cordillera by far the 
most important place, although not the present capital, 
is the famous city of Nuestra Senora de la Paz (" Our 
Lady of Peace "), which was so named by its founder, 
Alonzo de Mendoza towards the middle of the sixteenth 
century, but was re-named La Paz dc Ayacucho (" The 
Peace of Ayacucho"), after the decisive battle of Ayacucho, 
which was to secure peace to the country by the 
expulsion of the Spaniards. 

La Paz stands 12,470 feet above the sea, under the 
shadow of Illimani, at the source of a stream which flows 
to the Beni >through the cleft in the Cordillera Eeal, by 
which Lake Titicaca formerly communicated with the 
Amazon fluvial system. It is proposed again to pierce 
the narrow sill at the head of the gorge now separating 
the two Ijasins, for the purpose of bringing the city into 



BOLIVIA 



2H1 



direct connection with the projected Oruro-Puno railway, 
and thus giving it access by the Chilian and Peruvian 
main lines to the Pacific at Antofagasta and Mollendo. 
But these projects await the establishment of a govern- 
ment strong enough to attract the capital needed for 
their execution. 

Sorata, at the head of the Eio Sorata, one of the 
numerous auriferous ahluents of the Beni which take 




LA PAZ DE AYACUCHO. 



their rise on the eastern slope of the Cordillera between 
Illimani and Illampu, is at present an attractive health 
resort, much frequented by the citizens of La Paz. But 
the name is still remembered in connection with one of 
the most tragic incidents that took place during the 
widespread revolt of the Indians against their Spanish 
oppressors in the latter half of the eighteenth century. 
A large number of whites from the surrounding districts 
had taken refuge in Sorata, where they hoped to hold 



262 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

out till relieved by the forces engaged in stamping out 
the revolt. But the insurgents, instead of coming to 
close quarters, adopted the novel device of constructing 
a large reservoir above the town and then removing the 
dam, with the result that the whole place, with its over- 
crowded streets and houses, was swept away in a deluge 
of slush and water. 

On the extremely fertile and salubrious plateau 
watered by the head-streams of the Eio Grande is^ 
situated the large city of Cochabamba, which gives its 
name to the Cochabamba range. It is the chief agri- 
cultural and industrial centre in Bolivia, and one-fourth 
of the whole trade of the country is concentrated in this 
flourishing district. The chief industries are cotton and 
woollen spinning, tanning, brewing, soap and starch 
works, while the rich soil yields heavy crops of wheat 
and other cereals. 

Beyond the Cochabamba range the entrance to the 
plains is guarded by the outpost of Santa Cruz de la 
Sierra, a name familiar to all travellers and explorers in 
those low-lying borderlands between the Brazilian and 
Andean highlands. Thanks to the navigable waters of 
the neighbouring Eio Mamore, and the well-known tracks 
radiating in all directions over the land, Santa Cruz has 
long been the headquarters of the exploring expeditions, 
which have happily succeeded the former raiding in- 
cursions into the Chiquitos territory, Paraguay, and the 
West Brazilian wilds. 

On the uplands drained by the head-streams of the 
Pilcomayo stand the renowned but now decayed cities of 
Potosi and Sucre, the latter since 1894 capital of the 
republic Potosi, whose mining operations at one time 
controlled the money markets of the world, was in the 
seventeenth century the largest city in the whole of 



BOLIVIA 263 

America, with a somewhat fluctuating population of 
from 100,000 to 160,000. Thus was, at least, for a 
time, jus tilled the proud title of Villa Imi^erial bestowed 
upon it by its founders in 1545. Its better known 
name is taken from the lofty Cerro de Potosi (15,400 
feet), from which it derived its fame and prosperity, and 
which has been described as a " silver " peak. 

But the almost incredibly rich argentiferous lodes, 
pierced in all directions by deep-sunk shafts and lateral 
galleries, could not last for ever, especially after most 
of the 5000 subterranean passages had subsided when 
the lowest pits became flooded with water. Some of 
the mines are, no doubt, still worked, but their yearly 
output of about £150,000 is scarcely one-seventh 
of their former yield. This must have averaged con- 
siderably over £1,000,000 for the 300 years, which, 
according to some estimates, yielded a total sum of 
about £340,000,000. 

Standing at the tremendous altitude of 13,325 feet 
above the sea, within 2000 feet of the summit of the 
Cerro, Potosi enjoys the unenviable distinction of being 
absolutely the highest abode of man in the southern 
continent. It lies, in fact, several hundred feet above 
the strictly inhabitable zone, in a region where the 
atmosphere is so rarefied that most of the children either 
die soon after birth, or else never acquire the faculties of 
sight and hearing. So greatly does the mortality exceed 
the birth-rate that tlie population can be maintained 
only by a constant inflow of adults attracted to the few 
mines still kept open. When the last of these is closed, 
Potosi, with its sumptuous monuments, already disused 
mint, and aqueducts far beyond the requirements of its 
present inhabitants, will be entirely deserted, and to 
future generations its extensive ruins may prove as great 



264 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

a wonder as those of Tiahuanaco now do to the few way- 
farers wandering over the scarcely inhabitable southern 
shores of Titicaca. 

At a short distance to the north-east of Potosi, but at 
a much lower elevation (8860), Sucre, the present ephe- 
meral capital of the republic, occupies a pleasant and 
healthy position close to the Cachamayo head-stream of 
the Pilcomayo. It stands on the site of the old Indian 
settlement of Chuquisaca {Chuquicliaca), that is, the 
" Golden Bridge," now re-named Sucre, in honour of the 
general who gained the great victory of Ayacucho over 
the last of the royalists. In the halcyon days of the 
mining industry, when Potosi was minting the currency 
of half the civilised world, Sucre served as a health 
resort for its sickly inhabitants. At present it owes its 
prosperity, not to the mineral but to the vegetable 
kingdom, the surrounding district being one of the most 
fertile in the State. A curious local industry is the 
preparation of argillaceous bon-bons, which are sucked 
like liquorice-sticks, without any injurious effects, if used 
in moderation. All over these uplands " clay dumplings 
and potatoes " are a favourite dish, and we know that 
other edible earths are largely consumed by many of the 
aborigines both in South America and in Africa, but not 
everywhere with impunity. 

On a tributary of the Berraejo, which takes its rise 
within the Bolivian frontier, stands the outpost of Tarija, 
a place which in recent years has acquired some notoriety 
as a convenient refuge of " politicians out of ofl&ce," and 
other turbulent citizens of the neighbouring Argentine 
republic. The district is more favourably noted for its 
excellent soil, which yields magnificent crops of cereals, 
vegetables, and fruits of all kinds. As on the Cocha- 
bamba plateau, the herbage is extremely nutritious, so 



BOLIVIA 265 

that in the whole of this region there is a great future 
for the stock-breeding industry. 



Eesources — Minerals — Vegetable Products — 

Despite the loss of the rich mineral districts of the 
Pacific slope, wirested from her by Chile, Bolivia still 
possesses in the Huachaca and Oruro mines some of the 
most productive argentiferous lodes in the world. Here 
the ores contain nominally from a tenth to a fifteenth 
part, and exceptionally as much as one-half or even three- 
quarters of pure metal. In 1896 nearly 1,500,000 
pounds weight of silver were exported, and the output 
will certainly increase with the development of railway 
enterprise on the Central plateau. 

Next in importance to silver are the tin beds, which 
occur at short intervals all along the east side of the 
same region, and thence southwards nearly to the 
Argentine and Chilian frontiers. These beds are found 
especially in the trachitic porphyries and other plutonic 
rocks, which crop out through the older schists, and in 
some places the ores consist of more or less pure metal. 
In 1892 the total yield of 8670 tons was valued 
at £512,000. Copper also abounds, especially in the 
La Paz district, where the famous Corocoro and Chacarilla 
mines contain ores with as much as 85 per cent of pure 
metal. In the same year, 1892, the value of the copper 
output exceeded £90,000. 

Gold is widely diffused, but nowhere in large quanti- 
ties, except perhaps in some of the imperfectly surveyed 
auriferous reefs in the province of Santa Cruz. Gold 
quartz veins of surpassing richness are also said to occur 
on a branch of the Eio Baure or Blanco, which flows 
en1;irely through Bolivian territory to the left bank of 



266 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the Gruapore. Salt abounds in the southern provinces, 
but coal and iron appear to be rare, althougli carboni- 
ferous beds are reported in the Titicaca basin. Platinum, 
antimony, bismuth, and arsenic also figure amongst the 
minerals, the total annual yield of which averages about 
£2,500,000. 

On the uplands wheat, barley, and other cereals of 
good quality are raised, but in quantities insufficient to 
supply the local demand. The same remark applies to 
the produce of the lower and warmer zones, which are 
well suited for the cultivation of maize, cotton, tobacco, 
coca, coffee, sugar, and even wine. But the development 
of the agricultural industry is everywhere retarded by 
the lack of good communications. 

Of forest products the most important have hitherto 
been chinchona and rubber. The latter, especially since 
about the year 1880, has engaged the attention of 
foreign speculators to the neglect of almost all other 
economic growths. In Bolivia the rubber-yielding plant 
is the Siphonia {S. elastica), of which there are three 
distinct varieties growing to a height of 50 or 60 feet. 
In recent years the enterprising traders engaged in this 
industry have indirectly helped more than any other 
class to open up the country, to survey its navigable 
waters and promote geographical research in all directions. 

Communications 

But all real progress is arrested by the lack of good 
communications in almost every part of the republic. 
In the Yungas zone the routes traversing the woodlands 
and more open pampas are merely bridle-paths, while the 
numerous navigable affluents of the Madeira are frequented 
only by the canoes of the Mojos and other aborigines. 



BOLIVIA 267 

Even the highways between such important places as 
Cochabamba and Sucre are in the same wretched state as 
they were some forty years ago, when Don Eafael 
Bustillo described Bolivia as a region seated upon the 
masses of silver of the double Andean range, a territory 
fertile beyond measure, where the treasures of the most 
opposite climates were grouped together, " but perishing 
from consumption for want of means of communication, 
which might carry to the markets of the world her valu- 
able productions, and stimulate her sons to labour and 
industry." 

Administration 

By the present constitution, which dates only from 
October 1880, the executive is vested in a President 
elected by popular vote for four years, and not eligible 
for re-election. The legislative functions are entrusted to 
a Congress of eighteen Senators and sixty-four Deputies, 
both elected by the suffrage of all adults who can read and 
write, the former for six the latter for four years. The 
President is assisted by two Vice-Presidents and a 
Cabinet of five ministers. 

Although the Eoman Catholic is the State religion, 
a measure of tolerance is extended to other forms of 
worship, at least in those districts where it would be 
difficult to enforce conformity. 

Primary instruction is free and in principle obliga- 
tory. Yet in 1896 there were only 506 primary schools 
attended by less than 33,000 pupils, besides 10 secondary 
schools and colleges with 2140 scholars. On the other 
hand, there are no less than six " universities," generally 
with three faculties (law, medicine, and divinity), and a 
collective attendance of 1900 students. For the settled 
Indian communities there are 70 schools conducted by 



268 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

the padres, besides 34 mission stations with 160 schools 
supported partly by the State, partly by the provinces. 
It is pleasant to read that in the Mojos missions " all 
who have done service in the churches as sacristans and 
choristers are able to write ; they also can read music, 
for which they use the ordinary five-line system. There 
are small schools in all the principal Indian villages, in 
which reading, writing, and Catholic prayers are taught 
in the Castilian language ; and I was rather surprised 
to see the amount of rudimentary knowledge that is 
drilled into the Indians, who as a race are not at all 
deficient in natural intellect." ^ 

For the administration of justice there are a Supreme 
Court in the capital, eight district courts, and the courts 
of the local magistrates. 

Besides a regular force of 1500 men there is a 
national guard, in which all citizens are liable to serve. 
According to the conscription law of 1892 military 
service is compulsory in the standing army, the reserve 
and extraordinary" reserve. 

1 Mathews, p. 127. 



To {woe poffe 268. 



GO 





'SjupiA, 



BOLIVIA 




CHAPTEE IX 



CHILI 



Extent — Boundary Questions — Area — Population — Physical Features — 
The Central Plain — The "Western Cordillera — The Cordillera de los 
Andes — Mercedario, Aconcagua, Tupungato — The Southern Andes — 
Igneous and Glacial Phenomena — The Chilian Archipelagoes — 
Magellan Strait — Tierra del Fuego — King Charles South Land — Mas 
a Fuera ; Juan Fernandez — Hydrography — The Chilian Coast Streams 
— Lakes — Climate — Flora — Fauna — Inhabitants — The Araucauians — 
The Fuegians — Yahgans and Alacalufs — The Chilians — Topography — 
Pi,ail\vay Enterprise — Natural Resources- — Agricultural and Mineral 
Wealth — Land Tenure — Emigration — Administration. 



Extent — Boundary Questions — Area — Population 

Chili or Chile, which by a curious concideuce has in 
Quichuan the same meaniug as the English word chilly, 
was the name given by the Incas to the coast region 
stretching for an unknown distance southwards beyond 
the river Maule, — southern boundary of their empire. At 
present the same term, expanding with the northern and 
southern expansion of the Chilian State since the estab- 
lishment of its independence in 1818, covers the whole 
of the Pacific seaboard between 20° and 55° S. lat., that 
is to say, from the Peruvian frontier nearly to the ex- 
tremity of Tierra del Fuego. But it extends scarcely 
anywhere much more than 100 miles inland, so that 



270 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

with a mean breadth of perhaps not more than 70 
miles the total length falls little short of 3000 miles. 
Such an extraordinary conformation, for which no parallel 
can elsewhere be found, would be impossible in the case 
of a completely land-locked State, but is an element, not 
of weakness but of strength, for Chili, which, thanks to 
the vast development of its coast-line, has easily acquired 
the command of the neighbouring seas, and thus become 
one of the most vigorous and aggressive powers in the 
Xew World. 

Landwards Chili is conterminous only with Peru and 
Bolivia, where the frontiers have already been described, 
and with Argentina, where the frontiers, badly defined 
by more than one convention, are still a subject of litiga- 
tion at several points. By a mutual agreement the 
whole question was referred for arbitration in 1898 to 
Queen Victoria, whose decision is still pending. 

As soon as the two States began to extend their sway 
towards the extremity of the Continent, a clash of 
interests became inevitable in the hitherto unoccupied 
regions of Patagonia and Fuegia. By the convention of 
1881, the crest of the Andes, regarded as the divide 
between the Atlantic and Pacific basins, was taken as 
the political divide between the two States from their 
first point of contact as far as 52° S. lat. Then the 
line w"as made to coincide with the same parallel as far 
as 70° W. long., from which point it was deflected 
slightly to the south so as to strike Cape Dungeness on 
the north side of the Atlantic entrance to Magellan 
Strait. In Fuegia the parting-line followed the meridian 
of 68° 34' from Cape Espiritu Santo to Beagle Channel, 
all the islands south of which were assigned to Chili. 
Thus Cape Horn fell to Chili, and Staten Island to 
Argentina, while Magellan Strait was declared neutral 



CHILI 271 

and free to all flags, and all this part of the convention 
holds good for both contracting parties. 

Not so the mainland, where it was soon discovered 
that at several points the crest of the Andes in no way 
coincided with the water-parting between the two oceans. 
Thus the exploration of the Eio Aysen carried out by 
Dr. Steffan and others in 1897 showed that, like other 
recently surveyed Pacific Coast streams, this river " has 
its sources far to the east of the principal chain of the 
Andes, its basin stretching over the comparatively level 
country traversed by the eastern sub-Andean ridges."^ 
Here the water-parting "seems to run, in the north, 
between the Aysen and Lakes Fontana and La Plata," and 
in the south at a considerable distance beyond the 
farthest point reached by the expedition on the southern 
arm of the Aysen, named by Dr. Steffen and his com- 
panions Eio Simpson " (ib.). On the other hand, the 
divide in some districts approaches so near to the 
Pacific that wei^e it followed the Patagonian part of 
Chili would be cut into a number of practically isolated 
sections. To remedy this, another convention made in 
1893 took as the political divide the water-parting in 
the main chain of the Andes, so that the frontier, 
instead of coinciding with the so-called continental 
divide, would have to cross the rivers flowing from the 
easternmost crests of the main Andean range. But when 
the new boundary came to be laid down fresh difticulties 
firose, which are now the subjects of arbitration. 

Whatever may be the decision of the arbiter, it can 
affect only to a small extent the actual area of Chili, 
which, including all the territory wrested by the war of 
1879-81 from Peru and Bolivia, falls just short of 
294,000 square miles, with a population of perhaps 
^ Geogr. Jour. February 1898, p. 184. 



272 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



2,800,000, although by the defective census of 1895 
returned at only 2,712,000, distributed as under over 
the twenty-three provinces and single territory of the 
republic : — 



Provinces. 










Area 


in Sq. Miles. 


Population. 


Tacna 8,685 


24,160 


Tarapaca 












19,300 


89,751 


Antofagasta 












60,968 


44,085 


Atacama 












43,180 


59,712 


Coquimbo 












12,950 


160,898 


Aconcagua 












5,840 


113,165 


Valparaiso . 












1,637 


220,756 


Santiago 












5,223 


415,636 


O'Higgins 












2,524 


85,277 


Colchagua 












3,795 


157,566 


Cnrico . 












2,913 


103,242 


Talca . 












3,678 


128,961 


Linares 












3,588 


101,858 


Maule . 












2,933 


119,791 


Nuble . 












3,556 


152,935 


Concepcion 












3,535 


188,190 


Bio-Bio 












. 4,158 


101,768 


Malleco 












2,856 


98,032 


Cautin . 












3,126 


78,221 


Arauco . 












4,248 


59,237 


Valdivia 












8,315 


60,687 


Llanquihue 












. 7,823 


78,315 


Chiloe . 












3,995 


77,750 


Magallanes (Ter.) ■ 






. 75,292 


5,170 


Total 


293,970 


2,712,145 



At present (1900) the actual population still falls 
short of 3,000,000, including about 50,000 full-blood 
Indians, chiefly Araucanians, and nearly 100,000 for- 
eigners. As shown by the subjoined table, contingents 
from various parts of the civilised world have in recent 
years been attracted in considerable numbers to the 
Chilian republic by the inducements held out to per- 
manent settlers on the land, although trade and the 



CHILI 



273 



industries are far from being as flourishing as would 
appear from ofdcial representations : — 



Peruvians 
Bolivians 
Argentines 
Germans . 
English . 
French . 
Italians . 



40,000 
16,000 
10,000 
8,000 
6,000 
5,000 
5,000 



Spaniards 
Swiss 
Chinese . 
Americans 

Australians 
Scandinavians 

Total 



3,000 
2,000 
2,000 
1,000 
750 
500 

99,250 



Physical Features — The Central Plain 

AVitiiin the present Chilian domain is included the 
whole of that section of the Andes which is disposed in 
the direction from south to north, and comprises about 
one-half of the entire length of the system, measured from 
Fuegia to the Atrato. Thus Arica, where tlie system 
begins to bend round to the north-west, and where the 
Chilian section terminates, lies under 19° S. lat., that is 
to say, allowing for the curvature of the northern section, 
stands about midway between Magellan Strait (55° S.) 
and the Gulf of Darien (9° N.). 

On an ordinary map of the southern continent the 
narrow Chilian half of the system looks like a mere 
strip of coast-lands traversed by a single mountain range, 
so that it is difficult at first sight to understand that 
here also the double formation — Coast Kange and Andes 
proper, with the intervening plateau and cross-ridges 
— is maintained, though not throughout the entire 
length of 3000 miles, between Peru and Fuegia. But 
in Chili proper, apart from the territory lately wrested 
from Bolivia, the outer Cordillera almost disappears at 
both ends, in the north by erosion or possible subsidence, 
in the south by actual submersion beneath the waters of 
the Pacific, though even here it is still represented by 
VOL. I T 



274 COMPENDIUxM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the insular chains fringing the coast from Chiloe to 
South Fuegia. 

But in the central region the outer range stands out 
conspicuously, especially when viewed from the sea, and 
maintains a considerable elevation for about 700 miles 
between 30° and 40° S. lat. Here is develojaed the 
great central valley of Chili proper, which is enclosed 
between the outer and inner ranges, and in and about 
which, as on the corresponding Alta Planicie of Bolivia, 
are situated the capital, Santiago, with its flourishing 
seaport, Valparaiso, and most of the large centres of 
population. 

The Western Cordillera 

In the old Bolivian provinces, where the Western 
Cordillera forms the divide between the Pacific and the 
closed Titicaca-Aullagas Ijasin, the range is surmounted 
or flanked by several snowy summits of igneous oiigin 
and of great altitude. Such are Tacora (19,800 feet), 
source of the Maure, which flows to the Desaguadero ; 
Chipicani (20,000 ?), dominating tlie Hucdlillas Pass, 
which is itself nearly 14,000 feet high; Pomarape 
(20,500), which still emits smoke; Parinacota (20,950) 
and Hucdlatiri (19,720), near Lake Chungarra. Farther 
south the Western Cordillera, whose loftiest peaks, 
Yahricoya and Tata Yaetura, scarcely fall below 17,000 
feet, develops east of Iquique a table-like fijrmation, and 
is consequently locally known as La Mesa. 

In the Atacama region, a little farther south, this 
formation breaks into a number of relatively low ridges, 
mostly running north and south, rising above 10,000 feet 
in the Caracoles ("shell") heights, but falling to less 
than 5000 feet on Jllount Trigo on the coast, about 25° 
S. lat. Beyond this point the western system can no 



CHILI 275 

longer be distinctly followed till it again rises to a height 
of 6000 or 7000 feet in the ridge west of Chacahiico 
between Valparaiso and Santiago. This ridge, cul- 
minating in Mount Colligiiai (7320 feet), south-east of 
Valparaiso, is pierced by a number of easy passes, which 
represent the gorges through which the lacustrine waters 
formerly flooding the central Chilian plain were dis- 
charged westwards to the Pacific. In this respect the 
southern depression presents a striking contrast to the 
Titicaca basin, which, as already seen, sent its overflow 
eastwards to the Atlantic. 

Farther south the coast system decreases continually 
in height through the Nahuelhuta range (5000 feet) in 
the Araucanian territory to the Cordillera Eelada and 
other low ridges in the province of Valdivia, all of which 
fall below 3000 feet. It was in this region that Darwin 
and some other observers were led to infer a general 
upheaval of the seaboard from the terrace formations 
resembling old marine beaches, and the beds of marine 
shells, all now standing at considerable elevations above 
the present sea-level. But the point has been contested, 
and while some attribute the terraces at the issue of old 
river valleys to the erosive action of running waters, 
others suggest that the shell-heaps may be mere kitchen- 
middens accumulated by the al)origines in a region which 
is now known to have been inhabited since Pleistocene 
times. In Fuegia and on the Atlantic side (Brazil and 
Argentina) such middens exist in great numbers, and are 
often of prodigious size. One explored by Dr. Lovisato 
in Elizabeth Island, although greatly eroded by the surf, is 
still nearly a mile long, and presents many indications of 
vast antiquity. In any case the upheaval can scarcely 
have been so general as formerly supposed, because 
signs of the opposite phenomenon of sul)sidence have 



276 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

been observed in one of the neighbouring Chonos 
Islands. 

Beyond the province of Valdivia the Coast Eange 
disappears altogether, or perhaps it would be more correct 
to say, here breaks into a long chain of islands, which, 
beginning with Chiloe, skirt the seaboard to the extremity 
of the Continent, and are continued in a graceful curve 
through the South Fuegian groups round to Staten 
Island, where the Andean lands appear to terminate. 
Corresponding with the break up or subsidence of the 
Western Cordiller^ is the continuous southward incline 
of the great Chilian central valley down to sea level. 
Contracting here and there to mere gorges or level glens, 
the central plains develop in Valdivia a series of lacustrine 
basins — Galafquen, Huanche, Banco, Llanquilhue — 
through which they merge at last in the inner waters, 
fjords, sounds, and inlets flowing between the mainland 
and the line of outer archipelagoes. Some of these 
channels penetrate far inland, others expand into wide 
passages, such as the G-ulfs of Corcovado and Penas, 
Nelson and Magellan Straits, and Beagle Channel, by 
which the long chain of fringing islands is disposed in 
a number of more or less distinct insular groups. 



The Cordillera de los Andes 

Behind and above all these outer formations — coast 
ranges, lateral ridges, central plains, archipelagoes, and 
waterways — the Cordillera de los Andes, properly so 
called, forms a magnificent background, running without 
interruption for some 3000 miles along the eastern 
frontier, with numerous peaks towering many thousand 
feet above the snow -line, and in mighty Aconcagua 
possibly reaching the culminiiting point of the New 



CHILI 277 

World. But, like the central valley and the coast range, 
the great Cordillera also falls generally in the direction 
of the south. A good sectional map of the whole sys- 
tem shows that, after maintaining a mean altitude of 
about 15,000 feet in the north, where Ccpiarpo, Bonete, 
Mercedario, Aconcagua, Twpungato, and some other peaks 
rise to and above 20,000 feet between the parallels of 
27° and 34° S. ; the main axis has in the south an 
average height of scarcely more than 8000 feet, with 
very few peaks rising above 10,000 or 11,000 feet. 

The Cordillera, interrupted by Magellan Strait in the 
wedge-shaped peninsula terminating with Cape Froward 
at the extremity of the Continent, reappears in the main 
island of Fuegia, where Mounts Sarmiento (6910 feet), 
Darwin (6800) and the Three Brothers (1640), all lying 
north of Beagle Channel, seem undoubtedly to belong to 
the Andean system proper. 

In the Chilian section of the system both igneous and 
glacial phenomena prevail to a far greater extent than in 
Bolivia or Peru. Most of the cones, however, are either 
quiescent or quite extinct, while some of the loftiest, 
including both Aconcagua and Tupungato, have lost all 
traces of their former craters. In the northern section, 
between the Bolivian frontier and Coquimbo, that is, along 
the eastern edge of the Atacama region, are concentrated 
over thirty extinct or dormant volcanoes, such as Lhd- 
layacu (21,650 ?), Antofalla (20,900), Socompa (19,600), 
Azupe de Gopiapo (19,700) and others exceeding 17,000 
feet. South of Copiapo the main range develops a 
plateau formation, which is crossed by relatively low 
passes, such as the Portezuelo de Come Cahallos (14,530 
feet), leading to the mining district of Famatina in 
Argentina. In summer the pa/rnpas, as the level open 
tracts are locally called, afford easy communication between 



278 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the interior of the Continent and the seaboard. But in 
winter they are difficult and even dangerous to cross, 
owing to the prevailing high gales, accompanied by 
intense cold, these exposed uplands offering scarcely any 
shelter to the wayfarer. 



Mercedario — Aconcagua — Tupungato 

Beyond the transverse Sierra de Dona Ana, which 
terminates near the coast in the Pajonal group (6720 
feet), the main range is again crossed by the still lower 
Aznfre Pass (11,970 feet) at a point where it approaches 
within 60 or 70 miles of the Pacific. But south of this 
break the whole system, here deflected to south by east, 
receives its greatest lateral and vertical expansion between 
the parallels of 31° and 34' S. in the provinces of 
Valparaiso and Santiago. Here are developed several 
elevated lateral ridges which occupy a considerable space 
Ijoth in Central Chili and in the neighbouring Argentine 
provinces of San Juan and Mendoza, and are surmounted 
by some of the loftiest peaks and cones in the New^ 
World. Such are the Gerro del Mercedario, which has 
not yet been ascended, but has an estimated height 
of 22,320 feet; Aconcagua (23,080), and Tupungato 
(22,000), both of which were for the first time scaled by 
Mr. S. M. Vines of the FitzGerald expedition in 1897. 

These giants are long-extinct volcanoes, although now 
showing no trace of their terminal craters, which stood 
one or more thousand feet above the present summits. 
By his ascent of Aconcagua, which lies about midway 
between its two rivals — 40 or 50 miles south of 
Mercedario and north-west of Tupungato, 70 north-east 
of Santiago and nearly 100 from the Pacific — Mr. Vines 
may claim to have reached the greatest height yet 



CHILI 279 

attained, with certainty, by any human being. At such 
an altitude protracted existence is impossible, and even 
4000 feet lower down the explorers suffered intensely 
from the exhausting effects of the puna, as the saroche or 
'•' mountain sickness " is locally called. " I remember," 
says Mr. Vines, " the first morning after my arrival at this 
high camp [19,000 feet], Mr. FitzGerald set to work to 
do the cooking, which consisted of making some coffee — 
we did not want anything more. He told me to go and 
get the water for the coffee ; this consisted of taking a 
biscuit-tin and filling it with snow and ice, exactly 10 
yards distant from where I stood, near the fire. The 
guy-ropes of the tent stood in my way. I stepped over 
one of them with one foot and waited, and then I dragged 
the other leg after the first, and so on, until I reached 
the spot. I was ten minutes gone, and when 1 got back 
I had just enough snow and ice to wet the bottom of the 
kettle." ' 

Aconcagua, formerly assumed to stand in or on the 
border of Chili, is now- included in Argentina, in accord- 
ance with the latest agreements between the Argentine 
and Chilian Conmiissioners, F. P. Moreno and Barras 
Arana. Mr. FitzGerald, who approached it from the 
east (Mendoza) side, describes the High Andes as here 
running north and south in three great parallel ranges. 
But there are only two, the Tigj^e in the east, and in 
the west the chain of the water-parting, to which Acon- 
cagua l)elongs, but which lies some four miles farther 
west. Aconcagua is thus shown to stand well within 
the Argentine frontier. Altliough visilde on a clear 
day from the Pacific, it sends the whole of its 
drainage in the direction of the Atlantic, some 700 
miles away, so that from the hydrographic standpoint 
^ li. Gcogr. Jour., November 1898, p. 487. , 




ACONCAGUA. 



CHILI 281 

the " monarch of the Andes " clearly forms part uf the 
Argentine republic. From its summit a superb view is 
commanded of Mercedario, away to the north, and south- 
wards of the main range as far as Tupungato, with the 
intervening Juncal (20,500 feet), Navarro (19,500 feet) 
and Pollera (19,000 feet), peaks and glaciers clearly 
marking the boundary line between the two States. 

A few miles north of Aconcagua the main range is 
crossed by the Los Patos Pass (11,700 feet), which is 
associated with perhaps the most memorable event in 
the War of Independence. Although little used because 
of its extremely rugged character, it was surmounted in 
1817 by the Argentine General San Martin with his 
whole army, who was thus enabled to surprise the 
royalists awaiting him at the Cumhre Pass, some miles 
farther south. " He took five thousand men, with 
artillery, material for making bridges, and provisions, 
safely across that pass, fought the battle of Ghacahuco 
within three days afterwards, and entered the capital of 
Chili within five days " ^ — an exploit comparable to the 
passage of the Alps by Hannibal. 

The above mentioned Cumbre, which lies about 
midway between Aconcagua and Juncal, is destined to 
become as famous in the future as Los Patos has been in 
the past. Falling to 12,795 feet above sea-level, and 
presenting less difficulties than any other depression in 
this section of the main range, it has been chosen as 
the most suitable point through which to carry the 
now nearly completed Argento-Chilian trans-continental 
railway. On the east side the line has already pene- 
trated beyond Mendoza to Punta de las Vacas, 7858 feet 
above the sea, while the Chilian section has reached the 
Salto del Soldado, nearly twenty miles beyond Santa 
1 Sii' C. Markham, Gcoffi: Jour., Novembei- 1898, p. 493. 



282 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

Eosa de los Andes. Between these two terminal stations 
the distance is only 44 miles, and althougli this gap 
naturally presents the most formidable difficulties, in- 
cluding a long tunnel under the Cumbre Pass, hopes are 
entertained that this trans-Andean line will be finished 
before the close of the nineteenth century. 

At Tupungato the Andean system contracts to about 
15 miles on the Argentine side, but still maintains a 
consideral)le breadth in Chili, where range after range of 
lofty lateral ridges occupy the whole space of 45 miles 
between Santiago and the frontier. On the maps these 
parallel ridges are not figured, and in fact a vast amount 
of topographical work has still to be done before carto- 
graphists will be able to give an approximately correct 
picture of the Chilian Andes. " Hundreds and hundreds 
of miles of these mountains are unknown. Many lofty 
peaks, said to be over 20,000 feet in height, have never 
been measured ; they have never been visited, have never 
been approached by any one who was capable of describ- 
ing them." ^ From Tupungato the FitzGerald party 
sighted a great burning mountain, of which nothing 
was known till quite recently. " On arriving at the 
top of the ridge a volcano was seen about 20 miles 
to the south-west in great activity. ... It had the 
appearance of a great ridge, about 13,000 feet in heiglit, 
running towards the north, when its height gradually 
dwindled. A great fissure appeared in the middle of this 
ridge, from which the smoke poured forth in dark brown 
volumes," with a " strong, sulphurous, burning smell." ~ 
This is the Mount Bravarcl of the Argento- Chilian 
surveyors, who have so named it in memory of the 
Frencli geologist who lost his life during the earthquake 
of Mendoza in 1861. But they speak of it, not as a 
1 Sir C. JMurklumi, loc. cit. p. 493. - lb. \>. 484. 



CHILI 



283 



very active, but rather as " a nearly extinct vf)lcauo " 
(Moreno). 

The Southern Andes — Igneous and Glacial Phenomena 

South of Tupuugato the system still maintains a great 
elevation, and here follows a succession of volcanoes, 




MOUXT TIIONAIIOII. 



mostly extinct or long quiescent, such as Smi Jose de 
Maipu (17,644 feet); f^an Fernando; Tinguiririca 
(14,700); Peteroa (11,925), reported to have shown 
signs of life in 1762 and again in 1837; Descahezado 
(12,760); Las Yeguas (11,350); Campanario (11,000), 
and jYevado de Longavi (10,520), all apparently extinct. 



284 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Then follow the Nevada de Chilian (10,000), Antuco 
(9000), Villarica (9320), and Osorno (7500), all of 
which still occasionally emit vapours, while the four- 
peaked Chilian was in a state of constant eruption, dis- 
charging lavas and scoriae, during the years 1861-65. 
On the other hand, the Tronador, or " Thunderer" (9790), 
near the southern extremity of Chili proper, is so named, 
not from its underground disturbances, hut from the 
avalanches continually crashing down its slopes. 

It would thus appear that throughout the whole of 
the Chilian system igneous activity is dying out, while 
glacial phenomena persist, or even show symptoms of 
further expansion. Many of the cones have lost their 
terminal craters, or else these vents have become choked 
with frozen masses. Extensive glaciers descend the 
flanks not only of the giants in the lower northern lati- 
tudes, but also of the smaller groups in the extreme 
south, where less elevation is compensated by higher 
latitude and by a greater abundance of atmospheric 
moisture, everywhere a necessary condition of glaciation. 
The flanks of the Nevado de Chilian are furrowed by 
several frozen streams, which have never melted even 
during the fiercest igneous explosions, and Giissfeld, one 
of the great pioneers of Chilian exploration, discovered 
in the far south a wonderful glacier descending down to 
the region of arable lands. At present the head of the 
stream to which it gives rise stands 6260 feet above 
sea-level ; but towards the middle of the nineteenth 
century it reached as low as 5840 feet, so that the 
glacier has retreated 420 feet in fifty years. But in the 
Patagonian region some of the frozen rivers still descend, 
as in Greenland, to the level of the sea, and sliow no in- 
dications of shrinkage. 



CHILI 285 

The Chilian Archipelagoes 

The long chain of southern archipelagoes begins about 
42° S. lat. with the large island of Chiloe, whose very 
name — Chili hue, " Part of Chili " — shows that it was 
regarded even by the natives as a continuation of the 
mainland. It is in fact nothing more than a detached 
section of the coast range running at a mean height of 
about 2000 feet for 80 miles in the direction of the 
south. As in the neighbouring province of Valdivia, the 
steeper escarpments face seawards, while the land slopes 
gently eastwards to the gulfs of Anciid and of Corcovado, 
which are themselves to be regarded as a now submerged 
southern prolongation of the great central plain of Chili. 

These island-studded inland waters, flowing between 
the great Andes and the archipelagoes, that is, the frag- 
mentary coast range, are continued all the way to Fuegia, 
without any interruption except at the narrow neck ot 
the Taytao Peninsula, which geologically represents a 
short section of the coast range still connected with the 
mainland. Between Chiloe and Taytao lies the extensive 
Chonos Archipelago, which comprises over a thousand 
islands, rocks, and reefs separated from the Patagonian 
mainland by the narrow Moraleda Channel. The southern 
extremity of this channel is separated from the San 
Estevan inlet of the Gulf of PeSias by the isthmus of 
Ofqui connecting Taytao with the coast of Patagonia. 
Here rises Mount San Valentin, which sends down two 
glacial streams, one south to the San Estevan inlet, the 
other west to Lake San Eafael, which communicates 
through the Rio de los Tempanos north wax ds witli the 
Moraleda Channel. On reaching the lake the western 
glacier glides along the bottom at a depth of nearly 700 
feet, and is then broken into fragments by the upward 



286 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

thrust caused by the greater density of the lacustrine 
waters. Thus is kept up a perpetual thunder, echoed 
from cliff to cliff of the encircling hills, wliile the liberated 
tevi2)anos (" icebergs ") drift away to the Moraleda 
Channel. 

Interrupted by the spacious Gulf of Pcnas, which 
penetrates through a number of fjord -like formations, 
such as Jesuit Sound, the Boca de Canales, the Aro- 
•pazado Channel, and the Calen Inlet, far into the re- 
cesses of the main Cordillera, the insular chain is con- 
tinued farther on to the Strait of Magellan by the three 
large islands of Wellington, Hanover, and Queen Adelaide, 
each fringed by countless clusters of smaller groups. In 
these southern latitudes the terminology is mainly 
English, the first serious hydrographic surveys having 
been carried out by the British Admiralty during the 
early decades of the nineteenth century. Associated with 
the work are the names of King and Fitzroy, who were 
accompanied by the great naturalist Charles Darwin, and 
conducted the memorable expedition of ten years (1826- 
36), during which they completed the first systematic 
survey of the Magellanic lands from Fuegia to Chiloe. 

Wellington, about 40 miles south of the Taytao 
Peninsula, still remains the largest of all the islands 
north of Fuegia, although considerably reduced in size by 
the later surveys of Serrano and the German Alhafross 
expedition. Several tracts on the west side were found 
to be distinct groups separated from the main island by 
the Fallos Channel and other navigable waters. On the 
east side fiows the winding Messier Channel, which, at 
the English Narroios, contracts to a width of less than 
400 feet, and in some places rushes with the speed of a 
mill-race between high beetling cliffs. But, like all these 
inland passages, the channel is very deep, and presents a 



CHILI 287 

navigable waterway 150 miles long between Wellington 
and the rugged shores of Patagonia. 

Here the mainland offers a constantly varying prospect, 
" indented by numerous caves and several deep narrow 
sounds running far into the recesses of the Cordillera. 
In the intermediate channel crowds of islets, some rising 
to the size of mountains, some mere rocks peeping above 
the water, present an endless variety of form and outline. 
But what gives to the scenery a unique character is the 
wealth of vegetation that adorns this seemingly inclement 
region. From the water's edge to a height estimated at 
1400 feet the rugged slopes were covered with an un- 
broken mantle of green trees and shrubs. Above that 
height the bare declivities were clothed with snow, mottled 
at first by projecting rocks, but evidently lying deep upon 
the higher ridges. I can find no language to give any 
impression of the marvellous variety of the scenes that 
followed in quick succession against the bright blue back- 
ground of a cloudless sky, and lit up by a northern sun 
that illumined each new prospect as we advanced. At 
times one might have fancied one's self on a great river 
in the interior of a continent, while a few minutes later, 
in the openings between the islands, the eye could range 
over miles of water to the mysterious recesses of the 
Cordillera, with occasional glimpses of snowy peaks at 
least twice the heiccht of the summits near at hand." ^ 



Magellan Strait — Tierra del Fuego 

South of Queen Adelaide Island, which presents the 
same general aspect as the other Magellanic lands, the 
conspicuous headland of Cape Pillar, at the northern 
extremity of Desolation Island, marks the western 

i J. Ball, op. cit. p. 222. 



288 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

entrance of Magellan Strait. This famous inter-oceanic 
passage, by which Fuegia is entirely severed from the 
mainland, consists of two nearly equal branches disposed 
respectively in the direction from north-west to south- 
east and from north-east to south-west, with a total 
length of 340 miles. The junction takes place about 
midway between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, at the 




GLACIER BAY, STRAITS OF MAGELLAN. 

Cape Fro ward headland of the Brunsvnck Peninsula, 
which is the southernmost point of the American 
Continent. 

At first siglit the Archipelago of Tierra del Fueejo ^ 

1 After long search had failed to discover any clear indications of 
"tire," it was asked why Magellan should have called this region the 
" Land of Fire. " It was not, however, named by him Tierra del Fuego, but 
Tierra dc Humos, " Land of Smoke," and the change is said to have been 
made by Charles V., with the remark that "there is no smoke without 
fire." The "smokes," certainly seen by the great navigator curling up 
on the plains, are supposed to have risen from bonfires kindled by the 
natives to signal the portent of strange beings approaching in great ships. 



CHILI 289 

seems to present a chaos of insular masses, disposed 
without order or system. But a closer inspection shows 
that it comprises two distinct secondary groups — one, 
on the Pacific side, representing the south-eastern con- 
tinuation of the Chilian Coast Eange, the other, on the 
Atlantic side, representing a southern continuation of 
the whole of the mainland, that is, both the Great Andes 
and the Patagoniau plains. Between the two groups 
flows Beagle Channel, which, with its western extension, 
Darioin Sound, penetrates through several passages round 
Londonderry, Steivart, and some smaller islands to the 
Pacific, but is cut off from the Magellanic waters by the 
Brecknock Peninsula. This peninsula, although forming 
continuous land with the Atlantic section, belongs geologi- 
cally to the Pacific group, and falls into line with the 
outer chain of islands which stretch from Cape Pillar 
for over 400 miles round to Cape Horn. In this respect 
Brecknock should be compared with Taytao farther north, 
both being survivals from a time when all the insular 
groups from Chiloe to Staten Island formed part of the 
Southern Continent. 

But the separation must have taken place at a very 
remote period, and the different characters of the Pata- 
goniau and Fuegian faunas and floras clearly show that 
Magellan Strait is of great age. The oliservations made 
by the Nordenskjold expeditions of 1895-97 make it 
evident that the discrepancies in these respects are much 
greater than had hitherto been supposed. Many animal 
forms — reptiles, frogs, and numerous invertebrates — 
occurring on the mainland are unknown in Fueffia, and 
the "plant-forms of different families exhibit the same 
sharp demarcation " ^ between the two zones. The Strait, 
however, does not form a complete parting -line, for 

^ Geogr. Jour., April 1898, p. 437. 
VOL. I U 



290 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGliAPHY AND TRAVEL 

many eastern Patagonian forms occur also in Fuegia, 
and although neither the puma nor the rhea has crossed 
the channel a small lizard has been found as far south 
as Kio G-rande (53° 50' S.), the most southerly spot where 
reptiles have yet been discovered. 

Southwards the Pacific section of Fuegia, comprising 
the relatively large islands of Gordon, Hoste, Kavarin, 
and Wollaston, besides several small clusters, forms an 
irregular triangle with its base resting on Beagle Channel 
and its apex terminating at Gape Horn, southernmost 
point of the New World (60" S. lat.). North of the 
Brecknock Peninsula the Pacific section is completed 
by the dreary region wliich was aptly named Desola- 
tion Land by Captain Cook, and was long supposed to 
form a continuous mass extending from Cape Pillar to 
GocJcburji Ghannel. But later surveys have decomposed 
it into at least three distinct islands, and possibly more 
may yet be discovered, all separated by very narrow but 
deep channels, which flow between the Pacific and the 
western branch of Magellan Strait. The northern 
member of the group retains the name of Desolation, 
and this is followed by Santa Inez, a name which, 
pending further exploration, covers everything between 
Desolation and Clarence Islands. When Mr. Ball passed 
through he was shown one of the narrow sounds " which 
have lately been ascertained to penetrate entirely through 
what used to be considered a sinuie island." ^ 



King Charles South Land 

Although comprising only four distinct islands — 
King Gharles South Land, Dawson, Clarence, and Stcden — 
Eastern Fuegia, as the Atlantic section is often called, 

1 Geoiir. Jour., April 1898, p. 141. 



CHILI 291 

greatly exceeds the Pacific section in extent. In fact 
the first-mentioned island, which occupies the whole of 
the Atlantic side and extends right across the archipelago 
from Ca-pe S. Diego to the Brecknock Peninsula, is alone 
very much larger than all the other islands taken 
together. Its former connection with the mainland is 
clearly shown by a study of its contour lines, which 
on the east follow the concave curvature of the Pata- 
gonian seaboard, and on the west continue the convex 
trend of the Great Andes round to the Three Brothers 
at Cape S. Diego, over against Staten Island, at. the 
south-east extremity of the Andean system. 

Corresponding in its physical aspect with the general 
character of the mainland, King Charles South Land 
presents on the Atlantic side the same dreary steppe-like 
formation as Eastern Patagonia, and on the south and 
west sides the same rugged mountainous appearance as 
the Great Cordillera. Here the Andean system is clearly 
continued along the northern margin of Beagle Channel 
by the Darivin range, above which rise several peaks 
nearly if not quite 7000 feet high. Such are, going 
eastwards, the twin - peaked Sarmiento (6910 feet), ' 
Mount Darivin (6800), and Mount Frangais (7000 ?), 
near the Argentine frontier, beyond which the highest 
summits are Mount Cornu (4335) and the Three Brothers 
(1640), at the south-eastern extremity of King Charles 
South Land. 

Sarmiento, the " Matterhorn of the Puegian Alps," 
impresses the imagination with awe and wonder more 
profoundly than many far more elevated heights. Seen 
especially from the great bend of Magellan Strait, it 
produces an extremely imposing effect, its steep slopes 
and two jagged peaks filling the background at the head 
of the spacious sound flowing between Clarence and 



292 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TPAVEL 

Dawson Islands, and towering above the snowy crests 
which flank both sides of the channel. Although igneous 
formations abound in this southern section of the Pata- 
gonian Andes, Sarmiento itself does not appear to be of 
volcanic origin. " No volcanic rocks elsewhere in the 
world can retain slopes so nearly approaching to the 
vertical. It is, I believe, a portion of the original rock 
skeleton that formed the axis of the Andean chain during 
the long ages that preceded the great volcanic outbursts 
that have covered over the framework of the western 
side of South America." -^ 

King Charles South Land is divided by Dr. 0. 
Nordenskjold of the Swedish expedition into three 
distinct zones : (1) the just described southern highlands, 
forest-clad on their lower slopes ; (2) the more level central 
region, where the tops of the hills are alone covered with 
timber ; and (3) the northern treeless zone. The two 
northern zones are of Tertiary formation, covered with 
Quaternary deposits identical with the ground moraine 
of the old glacial region of North Europe. 

Besides the groups of islands several peninsular forma- 
tions, such as King William Land, Croker and Brunstuick 
Peninsulas, are also regarded as forming part of the 
Fuegian Archipelago. All these Magellanic lands, pro- 
jecting from the Patagonian mainland southwards and 
dividing, the strait into an eastern and a western branch, 
belong to the same geological formations as the neigh- 
bouring islands, and are nearly severed from the Continent 
by deep inlets, such as Otivay Water, Sky ring Water, and 
Obstruction Sound, all of which communicate by open or 
intricate passages with the other inland Magellanic 
waters. They now also belong politically to Chili, which 
has established the centre of administration for the 

1 J. Ball, op. cif. p. 24.5. 



CHILI 293 

Archipelago, not on any of the islands, but at PvMta 
Arenas {Sandy Point) on the north side of Magellan 
Strait, near the neck of Brunswick Peninsula. This site 
has been chosen chiefly on account of the coal-fields which 
have been discovered in the district, and which afford 
proof that the Antarctic, like the Arctic regions, enjoyed 
a warm climate in the Carboniferous epoch. Even in 
Tertiary times the fossil plants and animals collected by 
the Nordenskjold expedition of 1895-96 point to a some- 
what higher temperature than the present. Later came 
the glacial period, when an ice-sheet completely covered 
the Archipelago, filling Magellan Strait, but nowhere 
reaching the present Atlantic seaboard beyond the Gal- 
legos estuary. At the close of the Glacial period Fuegia 
stood some 200 feet lower than at present; but the 
subsequent upheaval seems now to have ceased, or at 
least to be progressing at a very slow rate. 

Mas a Fuera — Juan Fernandez 

To insular Chili also belong the already mentioned 
Oceanic islets of San Felix and San Ambrosia, Mas a 
Fuera and Juan Fernandez, as well as the more remote 
Sala-y-Gomez and Faster Island, fully described in another 
volume of the present series.^ San Ambrosio, culminating 
with a peak 830 feet high, forms with San Felix and a 
few scattered reefs a rocky archipelago 370 miles west 
of Concepcion on the coast of Chili. The group is 
uninhabited, and yields nothing but a little guano de- 
posited by seals; but one of the rocks, 175 feet high, is 
well known to English mariners, who have named it 
Peterborough Cathedral from the curious resemblance it 
bears to the facade of that edifice. The group was first 

^ Australasia, vol. ii. p. 528 sq. 



294 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

sighted in 1574 by Juan Fernandez, who in the same 
year also discovered the much larger and more southern 
archipelago which perpetuates his name. This group, 
which faces the Gulf of Corcovado at a distance of about 
350 miles, comprises the two islands of Mas a Tierra, 
" Landward," and Mas a Fmra, " Outward," — that is, 
seaward, nearly 100 miles farther west, with the islet 
of Santa Clara more to the south. 

Though not the largest, Mas a Fuera is by far the 
highest member of the group, rising over 6000 feet 
above the surrounding waters. But Mas a Tierra (3225 
feet), also specially called J'lian Fernandez, is better 
known to fame, thanks to its association with De Foe's 
Fiohinson Crusoe. This was the island where Alexander 
Selkirk led the solitary life described by himself. The 
incident is now commemorated by a monument here 
erected by the officers of the Challenger in 1875, when 
she visited the spot on her cruise round the world. The 
group is often visited by whalers and other vessels calling 
for supplies, which are obtained from the inhabitants, 
chiefly German colonists settled here in 1868. The 
Archipelago has a total area of about 80 square miles — 
Mas a Tierra, 38 ; Mas a Fuera, 34 ; Santa Clara, 8. 



Hydrography — The Chilian Coast -Streams 

Since the acquisition of the Atacama territory and 
neighbouring districts, a considerable section of Nortli 
Chili comes within the rainless zone, and here the coast- 
streams present the same wady-like aspect as in Peru. 
On the other hand, recent exploration has added greatly 
to the number of perennial water-courses and glacial 
streams which find their way to the Pacific in Southern 
Chili and Patagonia. Such is the Corcovado, which was 



CHILI 295 

discovered by the Kriiger and Rethwich expedition of 
1898, and flows from two glaciers near tlie coast to the 
gulf of like name about 43" S. lat. It expands to a 
width of 300 yards in its lower reaches, but higher up 
is a mountain torrent subject to sudden freshets, and 
obstructed by shoals and rapids. Such also are the 
large Rio Las Heras, which flows to the Calen Inlet, and 
was discovered by Moreno in 1897 ; the Trinidad and 
others partly surveyed by the Argentine ship Golon- 
drina in 1897; the TelcJto and Falena, both larger 
and north of the already known Aysen and Haeinvlcs ; 
the Puelo, Bodadahue, and Cisne, also north of the 
Aysen. The Corcovado and the Bodadahue are entirely 
comprised within the Chilian province of Llanquihue. 
But the Palena, Cisne, Aysen, Las Heras, and others, 
have their sources in the transversal depression of the 
Tertiary tableland of Patagonia, and consequently belong 
neither geologically nor topographically to the Andean 
system, which in fact is pierced by them on their sea- 
ward course to the Pacific. But the great majority 
of the Chilian rivers farther north rise on the western 
slopes, and in the central provinces acquire a consider- 
able development by pursuing a winding course over the 
great plain Iwfore forcing their way in deep rock}' 
gorges through the Coast Eange to the Pacific. All 
thus presenting much the same general character, the 
special features of each may be conveniently tabulated as 
under ^ : — 

t> • T„„,ti, DiscliarL'e ill 

Bueno Valdivia 7200 150 18,000 

Bi-bio Concepcion 7150 220 16,000 

Valdivia Valdivia 6000 82 1-3,250 



^ From this table are necessarily excluded most of the more recentlj' 
discovered southern rivers, detailed accounts of which are still awaited. 



296 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 



River 


Province. 


Basin, 
sq. miles. 


Length, 
miles. 


Discharge in 
cubic feet 
per second. 


Aysen 


Patagonia 


6000 (?) 


150 (?) 


10,000 (?) 


Maule 


Maule 


8000 


140 


10,000 


Rapel 


Colchagua 


6600 


134 


9,220 


Huemules 


Patagonia 


3000 


100 


9,000 


MauUin 


Llanquihue 


1400 


110 


9,000 


Itata 


Nuble 


4400 


108 


6,350 


Corcovado 


Patagonia 


1500 (?) 


80(?) 


6,250 (?) 


Cauten 


Arauco 


5000 


200 


6,200 


(Imperial) 










Token 


VaUlivia 


2100 


134 


3,520 


Mataquito 


Talca 


2700 


170 


3,500 


Maipo 


Santiago 


5250 


155 


960 


Aconcagua 


Valparaiso 


3560 


160 


360 


Chuapa 


Aconcagua 


3800 


100 


180 


Limari 


Coquimbo 


2600 


100 


110 


Coquimbo 


Coquimbo 


3500 


90 


70 


Huasco 


Atacama 


4200 


134 


70 


Copiapo 


Atacama 


4300 


155 


60(?) 



Lakes 

Formerly the whole of Chili appears to have been 
strewn with lacustrine basins, traces of which may still 
be detected even in the now arid Atacama region. But 
in the northern and central districts nearly all have 
disappeared, except the Laguna Negra, source of the Rio 
Maipo in the province of Santiago. Farther south the 
Gualletue lakelet in Arauco is followed by a continuous 
chain of flooded basins, which are disposed along the 
western foot of the Great Andes in the two southern 
provinces of Valdivia and Llanquihue. Like the rivers, 
of which they are feeders, these lakes generally increase 
in volume southwards, while their great depth and 
position under the slopes of the Cordillera show that 
they owe their origin to the grinding action of the great 
cflaciers which, during the Ice Age, advanced into the 



CHILI 297 

central plain much farther than at present. Such are, 
in their order from north to south, Villarica, Calaiquen, 
and Huanchue, which communicate with each other and 
drain to the Eio Tolten ; Banco, Payehue, and Rujpanco, 
sources of various head-streams of the Eio Bueno, which 
has the largest drainage area and is the most copious 
river in Chili ; lastly Llanquihue, largest of all these 
lacustrine basins, and source of Eio Maullin, which, 
relatively to the small extent of its catchment basin (only 
1400 square miles), has the largest volume of all these 
coast-streams (9000 cubic feet per second). Although 
few systematic soundings have yet been carried out, all 
the Chilian lakes are known to be extremely deep — 
Laguna Negra 900 feet, and Llanquihue 360 close to 
its rocky shores. 

Climate 

Although, excluding the newly annexed northern 
districts. Chili lies entirely within the temperate zone, 
its climate is everywhere profoundly modified by the 
local conditions. The chief determining factors are the 
general disposition of the land, disposed in the direction 
of the meridian, and stretching across thirty degrees of 
latitude ; the great central plain, confined between lofty 
mountain ranges which largely control the direction of 
the atmospheric movements ; and the vast development 
of a seaboard, washed along its entire length by cool 
Antarctic currents. 

In general the temperature falls steadily while the 
moisture increases southwards, so that a gradual transi- 
tion takes place from the great heats and absolute aridity 
of the northern lowland districts to the Arctic winters 
and superabundant precipitation of the Magellanic lands. 
Thus are explained the striking contrasts presented by 



298 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the Nortlierii Andes, towering to heights of 18,000 or 
20,000 feet, but forming relatively few glaciers and 
often largely free from snow, owing to the lack of 
humidity, and the Patagonian Cordillera falling below 
12,000 feet, but wrapped in a perennial snowy mantle, 
thanks to the excessive moisture of a region where on 
the uplands the precipitation takes the form of snow, 
and on the lowlands the yearly rainfall exceeds 100 
inches. 

The same contrasts are presented by the coast-streams, 
such as the Copiapo of the Atacama desert and the 
Patagonian Huemules, the former with a basin over 4000 
square miles in extent, but for a great part of the year 
sending not a drop of water to the Pacific, the latter 
rolling down a continuous volume estimated at 9000 
cubic feet per second, collected in a drainage area not 
exceeding 3000 square miles. 

Between these extremes lies Chili proper, which both 
on the coast and in the interior is favoured with one of 
the healthiest and most delightful climates in the world. 
Here are naturally situated the great centres of popula- 
tion, Santiago and Valparaiso, and the provinces named 
from them, together with the conterminous districts, are 
pre-eminently suited for permanent settlement by colonists 
from the temperate European lands. It is to this 
central region that are applicable those glowing descrip- 
tions which often cause such surprise to travellers visiting 
many less favoured districts. The descriptions, however, 
are perhaps a little overdraw^n, as so often occurs in the 
case of abrupt transitions from dreary arid wastes to 
more cheerful verdant prospects. Even these central 
provinces suffer at times from protracted droughts, and 
indeed from a general deficiency of moisture, the mean 
annual rainfall being much less than is commonly 



CHILI 299 

supposed, and nowhere rising to 20 inches in any 
of the districts nqrth of the Maule basin (35°-36° S. 
lat.), as shown in the subjoined table of temperatures and 
humidity : — 





S. Lat. 


Jleaii 
temp. 


Summer 
temp. 


Wintei 
temp. 


Rainfall 
in inches 


Iquique . 
Coquimbo 
Valparaiso 


20° 23' 
29° 56' 
33° 


66° 
59° 
57-6° 


75° 
65° 
63° 


59° 
53° 
52-5° 


0-5 

1-6 

13-5 


Santiago . 


33° 27' 


55-6° 


66° 


45° 


14-5 


Talca 


35° 36' 


56-5° 


70° 


45° 


19-7 


Valdivia . 


39° 49' 


52-9° 


61 -5° 


45° 


115 


Ancud (Chiloe) 
Punta Arenas 


41° 46' 
53° 10' 


50-7° 
43° 


56-5° 
51° 


45-9° 
34° 9° 


134 
22-5 



In this table is clearly seen the influence of the cold 
southern marine and aerial currents in lowering the 
summer heats on the west side of the continent. " While 
the winter temperatures are not very different from those 
of places similarly situated on the west side of Europe 
and Xorth Africa, those of summer are lower by 8° or 
10° Fahr., and the mean of the year is lower by 6° or 7° 
than that of places in the same latitude on the east side 
of South America. It is also apparent that much of 
what has been stated in works of authority as to the 
climate of this region is altogether incorrect." ^ 

In the Magellanic lands the winter temperature at 
sea -level is relatively high, seldom falling much below 
freezing-point, while that of summer is correspondingly 
lew, seldom rising above 60° Fahr. But in this region 
great contrasts are presented between the Pacific and 
Atlantic seaboards, the former being marked by ex- 
cessive moisture, the latter by a moderate rainfall — 20° 
to 25° inches — and high winds. These gales, which are 

^ Ball, op. eit. p. 145. Here it is pointed out that the mean tempera- 
ture of Santiago given by Grisebach as 67 "5° is less than 56°, and the 
rainfall, stated to be o%'er 40 inches, does not exceed 13'5 inches. 



300 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

felt as far seawards as the Falkland Islands, are due to 
the cold atmospheric current rushing down from the 
western highlands to fill the vacuum caused by the rare- 
faction of the dry and warmer air on the eastern low- 
lands. Hence also arise those williwaws, or sudden 
squalls, which sweep down like avalanches from the 
lateral gorges, and are so much dreaded by seafarers in 
Magellan Strait and the neighbouring waters. 



Flora 

Perhaps the most striking feature of the Chilian flora 
is the large number of absolutely indigenous forms, 
showing that for long ages the Atacama desert in the 
north and the Great Andes in the east have largely 
acted as botanical divides between this region and the 
rest of the Continent. So destitute of vegetation are the 
arid northern districts, that for 600 miles between Ainca 
and Copiapo the all-pervading hue of the landscape is a 
dull mon(jtonous gray, scarcely anywhere relieved by a 
single patch of verdure. There are doubtless indications 
that parts of this region were formerly less arid than at 
present. But this appears to have been laigely due to 
the development of irrigation works under the Incas, and 
the whole region must have long formed as effective a 
barrier against the migration of species as the Cordillera 
itself. 

Amongst the numerous local forms are the Skytanthus, 
a dwarfish shrub with yellow flowers, like those of the 
jessamine, but with no allies elsewhere except two very 
different species in tropical Brazil ; several varieties of 
the cactus family, ranging as far south as Santiago, a 
proof that, as above seen, this district enjoys a drier 
climate than is currently assumed. Peculiar to the same 



CHILI 301 

region are tlie highly characteristic Vivianece and 
FrancooAiecB, which are by many botanists regarded as 
distinct natural orders elsewhere quite unknown. Of 
the Francoacecc, stemless herbaceous growths yielding a 
black dye and a drug with sedative properties, as many 
as two genera and five species have been enumerated, 
all exclusively from Chili. The Vivianece, also herbaceous 
or undershrabs, are still more numerous, comprising four 
genera and fifteen species, some of which appear to have 
wandered into South Brazil from their Chilian home. 
Altogether, of about two hundred genera belonging to the 
temperate zone of South America, the great majority are 
confined exclusively to this remarkable botanic kingdom 
of Central Chili, and amongst them are several groups, 
which show only a very remote affinity with the corre- 
sponding forms of other southern regions. The inference 
seems obvious that an isolated vegetable world was 
independently developed on the south-west Pacific sea- 
board at a time when a great inland sea still flowed 
between the eastern and western sections of the Con- 
tinent. 

It is in the Coquimbo district that the peculiar Chilian 
types begin to make their appearance, and they would 
seem to range thence southwards no farther than the 
Biobio basin (province of Concepcion), so that this local 
flora, like that of the Cape, was originally confined to 
somewhat narrow limits — a strip of coastlands stretching 
across six or eight degrees of latitude, with a mean breadth 
of about 80 miles. Most of the endemic types have 
obviously originated on the western slopes of the Andes, 
whence some modified forms have crept down to the 
lowlands. " Several of these, as was inevitable, have 
been found on the eastern flanks of the great range, and 
it is probable that further exploration will add to the 



302 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

number. But it is remarkable that as yet so large a 
proportion should be confined to Chilian territory." ^ Even 
the flora of the little Juan Fernandez group, now mostly 
replaced by European intruders, was of an independent 
character, and more allied to that of New Zealand than 
of South America. Here was a solitary palm of peculiar 
type, and it is remarkable that in Chili also only one 
member of the widely -diffused palm family has been 
discovered. Yet nearly all the arborescent forms are 
evergreens, such as the bushy jpeumo {Cryjxtocarya 
peumus), a species of laurel with edible berries ; and the 
Quillaja saponaria, a member of the rosaceous family, 
highly valued for the cleansing properties of its bark. 

A distinctive feature of the Chilian flora is also the 
extraordinary variety of the species flourishing side by 
side in the woodlands. Here are nowhere seen con- 
tinuous stretches of the same trees, as in the European 
pine or birch groves or in the Patagonian and Fuegian 
lands, where the forest growths comprise very few 
distinct forms, besides the widespread Winter's bark and 
a so-called " oak," which is really a beech {Fagas clrimys). 
Many exotics have been successfully introduced from 
Europe and other parts of the Eastern Hemisphere. 
Such are the chestnut, poplar, and oak, which thrives even 
more vigorously than in Europe ; the apple, which runs 
wild in Araucania ; the willow, the vine, wheat, and 
several other economic plants. 



Fauna 

Except in the class of birds, the Chilian fauna is far 
less independent than the flora. Even the huemul 
{Cervus chilensis), a species of deer figuring in the 
^ Ball, op. cit. p. 142. 



CHILI 



303 



national arms, is found also in Peru, and is even more 
abundant in Argentina than in Chili. But the iivdu, 
smallest of the deer tribe, appears to be elsewhere un- 
known. The ape family is unrepresented, and there are 
no jaguars, venomous snakes, or turtles. Characteristic 
rodents, although not confined to Chili, are the chinchilla 




of the warm northern districts, and the coyini, perhaps 
remotely allied to the beaver, and like it frequenting all 
the river banks. Both are of some economic value, 
thanks to their nnich prized furs, which are largely 
exported to Europe. Lizards are mainly c(jnfined to the 
hot arid zone, while toads and frogs in considerable 
variety inhabit all the marsliy wooded tracts. The 
vicuna is seldom met, l)eing mostly replaced by the 



304 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

allied giianaco, which has nowhere been domesticated, but 
ranges in large herds as far south as Magellan Strait. 
A large spider, whose bite is much dreaded, appears to be 
confined to Chili, where it infests the cultivated lands 
and especially the wheat-fields. There are no turtles, 
and scarcely any fishes in the lakes and rivers, although 
the marine waters abound in animal life — a peculiar 
species of cod, a gigantic crayfish, and enormous banks of 
mussels, sea-otters, and several varieties of the seal family. 
Some of these forms range to the Juan Fernandez group, 
where are met two species of humming-birds, one con- 
fined to these islands, the other occurring also on the 
mainland, together with a third species peculiar to Chili. 
Besides the condor and parrots, ranging far to the 
south, the Chilian avifauna presents an extraordinary 
number of indigenous forms entirely confined to this 
region, and no doubt intimately associated with the 
characteristic leafy evergreen vegetation of all the central 
districts. Conspicuous amongst the marine birds are the 
albatross, both the white and the black species; the 
giant petrel, closely resembling the black albatross ; the 
so-called " cape-pigeon " {Daption capeme), which has an 
immense range in the southern hemisphere, and the 
Colomba, with plumage like that of a turtle-dove but 
nearly as large as the Cape pigeon. 

Inhabitants — The Araucanians 

In pre-Columbian times the Kio Maule (35° S. lat.) 
formed the southern boundary of the Peruvian empire, 
and the etlmical parting-line between its Quichua-Aymara 
inhabitants and the Aucaes or " Eebels," as they called 
their independent southern neighbours.-^ From Auca 

1 It is no longer possible to determine the racial affinities of the 



CHILI 305 

come the Spanish forms Aucanes, Araucanes, and their 
territory, Araucania, whence the English term Arau- 
canians. Although recognising neither hereditary tribal 
chiefs nor supreme rulers, and constituting a mere 
aggregate of family groups without apparent political 
cohesion of any kind, these " Warriors " already formed 
in remote times a compact nationality sufficiently 
organised for all defensive purposes, and strong enough 
to maintain their independence first against the con- 
quering Incas, and afterwards against the Spanish 
Conquistadores themselves. Pizarro's associate, Almagro, 
extended his march in 1535 to the Maule, and he was 
followed in 1540 by Pedro de Valdivia, who founded 
Santiago and in the course of ten years fought his way 
to the Biobio basin, while his lieutenant, Aldarete, even 
penetrated into Araucania proper. But the heart of the 
nation remained untouched by these events, and con- 
tinued for over a century after that time to offer a stout 
and successful resistance to the invaders, who are said to 
have lost more men during the fierce struggle than in all 
their wars of conquest elsewhere in the New World. 
They had at last to give up the attempt to reduce the 
stubborn Araucans, and the protracted warfare, com- 
memorated by Alonzo de Ercilla's epic poem, Araucana, 
was brought to a close with the treaties of 1641 and 
1655, recognising the autonomy of the Moluche nation 
within the limits of the present province of Arauco. 

This territory, however, which has an area of about 
60,000 square miles between Arauco Bay and the Eio 
Valdivia, has since been encroached upon, not by force 

Copayapus, Coquimbos, and others who dwelt north of the Rio Mania, and 
some of whose tribal names survive in th'^ local nomenclature. Most of these 
aborigines had submitted to the authority of the Incas fully a century 
before the ai'rival of the Spaniards, to whom they offered no resistence 
after the overthrow of the Peruvian empire. 

VOL. I X 



306 co:\rPENDiuM of geography and ti:.\vel 

of arms but by a peaceful forward moveuient, which has 
left scarcely a nominal independence to the natives, and 
is gradually absorbing them in the rest of the Chilian 
population. Interminglings had akeady taken place 
through the capture of white or half-caste Spanish women 
during the border warfare, and the process has since been 
continued by friendly alliances between the two peoples. 
The Moluche domain is now nearly divided into two 
sections by the railways advancing from the coast and 
from the Andes towards the central plain ; all strategical 
points have long been occupied, and no serious effort has 
Ijeen made to recover a political independence now 
perhaps less valued than formerly, since the abortive 
attempt made some years ago to set up a separate 
" kingdom " under a French adventurer. 

From their present peaceful attitude, and their devo- 
tion to agriculture, and especially stock-breeding, in which 
they excel, the Araucanians would appear to have 
accepted the inevitable, satisfied to exchange a precarious 
autonomy for the status of free and respected Chilian 
citizens. The process of assimilation, already completed 
in the Chiloe and Chonos Archipelagos, must spread on 
the mainland all the more rapidly, since the so-called 
tribal groups are nothing more than territorial divisions. 
Such are the Picun-che, or "North-men"; the Huilli- 
che, " South-men " ; the Molu-clie, " West-men " ; and the 
Pehuen-che, " Pine-men," that is, the people of the central 
pine-groves, most numerous and powerful of all. On the 
eastern slopes of the Andes were the Pi(c/-cAe, "East-men," 
who afterwards ranged down the Eio Negro, and thus came 
in contact with the Pampas Indians. For the Moluches 
these Pampeans were also " East-men," whence the con- 
fusion between the two groups still prevalent in ethno- 
graphic writings. But their radically distinct languages, 



CHILI 307 

all highly poljsynthetic, enable us clearly to discriminate 
between the Araucanian and Pampean Puelches, as well as 
between both and the Patagonian Tehuelches. 



The Fuegians — Yahgans and Alacalufs 

A branch of these Patagonians are undoubtedly the 
Onas of East Fuegia, who in remote times crossed the 
Strait, and found new and congenial homes in the open 
steppe region of King Charles South Land. The rela- 
tionship is fully attested by their physical appearance, 
speech, and usages, in which respects the Onas differ 
profoundly from the Yahgans and Alacalufs, who are 
the true aborigines of the archipelago. 

Both of these groups occupy a low position in the 
social scale, and while the Alacalufs of the western islands 
may perhaps be descendants of the Araucanians, who 
have become debased in their unfavourable environment, 
the Yahgans of Beagle Channel would appear to be sur- 
viving representatives of the primitive populations, 
who, like the remotely allied Botocudos of Brazil, have 
remained almost stationary since the Stone Ages. 

In recent times some of the Yahgans have been 
brought under civilising influences by the English 
missionaries ; but those first met by European explorers 
are described as the most degraded of savages, with no 
arts, no clothes except undressed skins, no habitations or 
other shelters against the inclement Austral winters, no 
permanent ftxmily ties, and with mental faculties so little 
developed that their intelligence has been compared with 
the stationary instincts of animals. From the vast size 
and the contents of the kitchen-middens occurring in 
several parts of the Archipelago, it is evident that the 
Magellanic lands have been inhabited for incalculable 



308 



GOMPEXDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



ages ])y these aljorigines. Yet till quite recent times 
none of them had progressed to any appreciable extent 
beyond the extremely rude social condition of their 
Palaeolithic ancestors. The charge of cannibalism, how- 
ever, which was brought against them by the early 
observers, is said to be groundless, and their chief food 





is certainly not their aged or infirm relatives, or even the 
slain in battle, as has often been asserted, but mussels 
and other shell-fish, supplemented by the flotsam and 
jetsam of the surrounding waters. To these resources 
are added fish and aquatic birds, not, however, by the 
Yahgans, who have no knowledge of navigation, but by 
the somewhat more advanced Alacalufs, whose large sea- 



CHILI 309 

worth}^ skiffs are often met by Einopean vessels plying 
on the stormy waters of the Archipelago. On these 
occasions civilisation and savagery come into momentary 
contact, giving rise to strange scenes, which have been 
vividly described by Dr. W. H. Eussell : — 

" A woman with straight black hair, white teeth, and 
dancing black eyes, naked to the loins, sat in the stern of 
the frail craft of plank and bark, with a child in her 
lap, handling a clumsy, ill-shaped paddle ; at her feet 
there crouched a child of some three years old, naked and 
apparently quite contented, close to the faggots and 
burning embers placed on the stones which served as 
ballast. Another woman set on a thwart, and plied her 
oar with one hand, while she held out the other toward 
the ship, holding up a couple of otter skins, and asking 
for largesse, and her appeals were enforced by shrill 
screams for lacca ! hacca ! from her companions. A man 
in a white hat, ragged blue frock-coat and trousers, sup- 
plied the falsetto to the chorus of the women. The man 
was of a sickly yellow, the skin of his face puckered and 
withered like that of a monkey, his arms were thin and 
muscleless, his eyes dull and unintelligent ; the women 
were darker hued and far more pleasant to look upon. 
Their arms and limbs were round and well shaped, their 
shoulders plump and full. In a cutting wind, which 
made us glad of our warm coats, they sat with their naked 
children, almost naked themselves, smiling and happy — 
at least they looked so when the ship opened a fire of 
biscuits, bread, fruit, old clothes, and some small missiles 
of tobacco on them. The little ones set to work at once 
on bananas, and the mother clapped a fancy smoking-cap 
on the head of the elder. The old garments, which were 
thrown over to thejn, were carefully put away, and were 
not used, for the moment at all events. The savages in 



.'UO COMrEXDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AXL) TEAVEL 

the canoes were all much alike, with little variety save 
in age, all the women with dazzling teeth, straight hair, 
and black eyes, rather prominent cheek-bones and square 
jaws ; the younger lusty enough, and better and stronger 
looking than the men. As long as there were hopes of 
offers for the poor seal and otter skins and l3unches of 
red berries they held up, or of gifts of bread or other 
edibles, they hung to the ship, never ceasing to scream 
Inwca, I say hacca ! and galieta, or hiscuito. ' They are 
not Christians,' said one of the Chilian passengers ; ' nor 
are they likely to become civilised, less so than ever now 
since the sheep-farmers shoot them. The latter say they 
must shoot Fuegians to prevent them stealing their 
sheep.' The Fuegians might say, ' We did not ask you to 
come to our country with your sheep, and we can't 
help stealing sheep when we are hungry.' They will 
probably die out rapidly now that sheep-farming has 
come into vogue, just as the Australians and their dingoes 
did." 1 

The Chilians 

Apart from the Araucanians in course of absorption, 
and the Fuegians in course of extinction, all the inhabit- 
ants of Chili have long been merged in a common 
nationality of Hispano-American descent and of Spanish 
speech. Their civil wars took place in 1830, 1851, and 
1859, but they had a long period of internal peace from 
1860 to 1890. In 1891 another very sanguinary civil 
war was fought, ending in a successful revolution. There 
has been internal peace since 1892. 

Alone among South American Eepublics Chili has 
shown a predatory disposition. She has extended her 
territories at the expense of her neighbours by conquest. 

^ Op. cit. pp. 29-31. 



CHILI 311 

The success which has hitherto attended her arms in the 
invasion of the territory of her neighbours has added 
an assumption of superiority to tlie patriotic feeling 
characteristic of all Hispano-American peoples. 

Besides the Peruvian element, there are three or four 
families of English descent in Chili. An English name 
is borne by a Chilian admiral whose father married a 
Chilian lady and settled in the country. 

The Chilian nationality has also been strengthened 
by the accession of immigrants, chiefly Germans, whose 
intention is to settle permanently in the country. 

Topography — Railway Enterprise 

Apart from the capital, Santiago, and its seaport, 
Valparaiso, which rank amongst the great cities of tlie 
southern continent, large centres of population are not so 
numerous as might be expected from tlie generally 
prosperous state of the country, and especially from the 
immense development of the mining and allied industries 
in the northern provinces. But it is to be remembered 
that these provinces all lie within the rainless zone, which 
has no attractions except for those connected with the 
local interests. On the other hand, the Magellanic lands 
are scarcely inhabitable, while the more favoured central 
districts are engaged mainly in agricultural pursuits, 
which are nowhere favourable to the development of large 
urban groups. From the subjoined table it will be seen 
that in the whole State there are scarcely a dozen towns 
with over 10,000 inhabitants, and, it may be added, 
these places are mostly situated on or near the coast, and 
owe their prosperity to the steadily increasing foreign 
trade of the country : — 



112 



COMPENDIUiM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 





Pop. 1S95.1 




Pop. 1895 


Santiago , 


256,500 


Cauquenes . 


8,600 


Valparaiso 


122,500 


Valdivia 


8,000 


Concepcioii 


40,000 


Angeles 


7,800 


Taica 


33,000 


San Fernando 


7,500 


Iquique . 


33,000 


Temuco 


7,400 


Chilian . 


29,000 


Linares 


7,300 


Serena (Coquimlin) 


16,000 


Angol . . . . 


7,000 


Antofagasta 


13,500 


Rancagua 


6,700 


Gurico 


12,700 


Puerto Montt 


3,500 


San Felipe 


11,300 


Punta Arena'' 


3,200 


Tacna 


9,400 


Ancud . . . . 


3,200 


Copiapo . 


9,300 


Lebn . 


3,000 


In the arid n 


oitheni di 


stricts, which but f 


or the 



mineral wealth could never have invited any settlers, the 
chief places are Fisagua, Iquique, and Antofagasta on the 
coast, and Tarapaca and Huantajaya in the interior. 
Here British influences are everywhere dominant, and to 
the capitalists, who have developed the nitrate and allied 
industries, belong the workshops, the warehouses, the 
railways, the harbour works, the shipping, and the whole 
trade of the country. The very materials — galvanised 
iron and shingles — of which the houses of Iquique and 
Antofagasta are mainly constructed have been imported 
from England or the States, and put together on the 
spot. Iquique, the chief centre of this ceaseless move- 
ment, possesses the safest roadstead, under the shelter of 
rocks formerly covered with guano, is now supplied with 
water by an aqueduct from the neighbouring slopes, and 
is connected by a network of nearly 300 miles of railways 
with the La Noria nitrate works, with Pisagua and other 
points on the seaboard. 

^ These populations are those of the towns themselves, and not of the 
" municipalities," which in most cases comprise large rural districts, and 
convey an exaggerated idea of the size of the place. Thus Ancud, little 
more than a good-sized village, has a municipal population of 25,000, and 
76,000 are credited to the little town of Rengo, a few miles south of 
Santiago. 



CHILI 



3i; 



Some ten miles inland, at an altitude of 3000 feet 
above the sea, are the famous silver-mines of Huantajaya, 
which since their discovery in 1556 have yielded over 
£70,000,000 of pure metal, but appear to be now nearly 
exhausted. From Antofagasta on Moreno Bay farther 
down the coast much silver continues to be exported ; 
but this comes chiefly from Huanchaca and the other 
Bolivian mines, which are now tapped by the railway 
connectincf the Titicaca basin with the Pacific. 




K.TlQrK. 

Copiaih), an historical place perpetuating the name of 
tlie old Copayapu Indians, was an oljscure fishing village 
till the discovery of the rich argentiferous lodes of 
Chcmarcillo in 1832. The railway connecting Copiapo 
with tlie port of Caldcra, 5 miles to the north-west, was 
opened in 1851, and is consequently the oldest in Soutli 
America except the Demerara line in British Guiana. 
Silver occurs even as far south as Yerhahuena, at the foot 
of the Cerro de la Plata (" Silver Hill "), which is con- 
nected by rail with its port of Carrizal Bajo. Here the 
argentiferous ores are replaced l)y copper, which is found 



314 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 



in alnmdance in the neighbouring Huasco basin, and 
beyond it in many parts of the province of Coquimbo. 

Serena, tlie provincial capital, although destitute of a 
harbour, enjoys the advantage of a slieltered roadstead in 
Tongoy Bay, enclosed on tlie south by the sharp lieadland 
of Lengua de A^aca (" Cow's Tongue "). Tliis thriving 
seaport has also become the centre of a network of rail- 




C0QUIMI50. 



ways running up the Elqui valley to Vicuna, south to 
Ovalh, and soutli-west to the ports of Tongoy and Ilira- 
davia. The Ovalle line is eventually to l)e continued 
through Comhai-hala and Ulaj^el to Prtorca, wliere a 
junction will l)e effected with the Yal}>araiso-Santiago 
system, and thus with the Trans-Andean trunk line now 
approaching completion. 

Valparfdso was so named by its founder, Saaverda, 



CHILI 315 

from his native village in Old Castile. Its prosperity 
is not due to any natural advantages, for the road- 
stead is fully exposed to the northern winds, and hut 
partly sheltered from those of the south by a low 
headland, which has lately been extended by a break- 
water. The space Ijetween the neighljouring hills and 
the shore is also so narrow .that the city has been 
developed, not in a horizontal direction, but vertically up 
the steep slopes of the Coast Eange. Seen from the 
water, it thus presents an almost unique panoramic view, 
far more picturesque to the eye of the passing observer 
than convenient for the permanent residents. A high 
and broad mountain ridge forms a crescent round the 
open bay, and the flanks of this ridge have been furrowed 
by numerous emhrados or deep ravines, both sides of 
which are lined wdth houses of all sizes and shapes, im- 
parting a very singular appearance to the city. 

Along the shore skirting the bay runs the circular 
road between the waterside and the overhanoins; cliffs, 
and even for this thoroughfare room had to be found 
partly by filling in the low-lying beach, and partly by 
blasting away the projecting rocks. The roadway, thus 
almost literally hewn out of the mountain-side, forms the 
great artery of Valparaiso, and is skirted by some fine 
warehouses, banks, government and other public Ijuildings. 
According to the width of the various ravines in the 
precipitous escarpments, the lower parts of the city gain 
more or less easy access to the outlets of the valleys, 
while the plateau developed on the summit of the Cerro, 
and now densely covered with houses, is reached by 
winding paths excavated in the flanks of the eneirclinu- 
ridge. 

Foreigners constitute in some respects the most im- 
portant element of tlie population. While showing a 



CHILI 



317 



en-eater tendency to become naturalised than is the case 
in some other parts of South America, they have largely 
contributed to the rapid commercial prosperity of this 
great emporium of the New World. " The names over 
the shops, many of which are large and handsome, are 
mainly foreign, German being perhaps in a majority ; 
but the important mercantile houses are chiefly English, 
and, except among the poorer classes, the English language 
appears to be predominant. All people engaged in 
business acquire it when young, and very many of Spanish 
descent speak it with fluency and correctness.^ 

From Valparaiso to ^Santiago the distance in a straight 
line is not more than 55 miles. But the railway, which 
has to surmount the Coast Kange by a pass 4310 feet 
high, makes a great detour of 1 1 5 miles up the Quillota 
valley, and then round to the south, in order to reach 
the capital, which stands on the central plain 1740 feet 
above sea-level. The great city, which for population 
is surpassed in South America only by Eio de Janeiro 
and Buenos Ayres, enjoys an exceptional reputation for 
its well-i3aved, broad and clean thoroughfares. Some 
wealthy owners of mines and large landed proprietors 
have here erected many sumptuous edifices, rivalling in 
splendour the palaces of princes. But with these ex- 
ceptions the architecture of the place has been wisely 
kept within the limits consistent with economy and 
comfort, cleanliness and the climatic conditions. Hence 
most of the houses are built in the old Spanish style, and 
only one story high, as a precaution against the frequent 
and at times terrific earthquakes by which the country 
is visited. 

Owing to this circumstance, and to the straggling 
character of the suburbs, Santiago covers a larger area 

1 J. Ball, op. cit. p. 140 



CHILI 319 

than many places greatly exceeding it in population. 
But the inconvenience of " magnificent distances " is 
obviated by the numerous tramways running at very low 
fares in all directions from one end of the city to the 
other. Tlie finest view of the place is afforded by the 
Cerro Santa Lucia, a reddish porphyry crag rising abruptly 
from the very heart of the city, and laid out with much 
taste as a public pleasure-ground. It was on the summit 
of this historical height that the first settlers erected the 
stronghold, whicli enabled them to hold out for six years 
against their implacable Araucanian foes. So closely 
were they besieged that they were driven to live on the 
most loathsome food, and the little corn they could grow 
under the very muzzles of their guns. 

The Alameda is one of the finest in Spanish America, 
forming a triple avenue nearly two miles long and about 
100 yards wide, lined with poplars and adorned with 
fountains and statues of national celebrities. Conspicuous 
amongst these monuments is the equestrian statue of 
General O'Higgins, one of the foremost lieroes of the war 
of independence, who, however, banislied by his ungrate- 
ful countrymen, died in exile. 

For the splendour of their picturesque surroundings, 
few places can compare with the Chilian capital. " Eio 
de Janeiro, Constantinople, Palermo, Bey rut, Plymouth, 
all have the added beauty that the sea confers on land 
scenery ; but such a spectacle as is formed by the 
majestic semicircle of great peaks that curve round 
Santiago, lit by the varying tints of day and evening, 
is scarcely to be matched elsewhere in the world. In 
position, as in plan of building, I was reminded of Turin ; 
but here the Alps are nearly twice as high and at half 
the distance. Further than that, the low country at 
Turin opens to the east, and, although glorious sunrise 



320 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

effects are not seldom visiljle, they uever rival the splen- 
dours of the close of day." ^ 

Besides the coast-line, Santiago is connected, south- 
wards with Curico by a railway running for 116 miles 
through an extremely romantic country, and northwards 
with the still more romantic region of Mount Aconcagua 
by that section of the Trans-Andean system which 
branches off from Llaillai on the Valparaiso line, and 
ascends the valley of the Eio Aconcagua to San Felipe 
and Santa Rosa cle los Andes. Here a gap of about 44 
miles still remains to be bridged over between the Chilian 
and the Argentine systems, and another of about 100 
miles to effect a junction wdth the lines advancing from 
Serena in the direction of Petorca and Santa Eosa. But 
the Central Chilian system is now completed in the 
direction of the south by the line running from Curico 
through the important towns of Molina, Talca, Linares, 
Parral, San Carlos, and Chilian to Concepcion near the 
coast, with a short Ijranch from Bulnes to Torn^ on 
Talcahuano Bay, and down the east side of this inlet to 
Penco. Here it bifurcates, one branch skirting the south 
side of the bay to the port and arsenal of Talcahuano, 
while the other rejoins the main line at Concepcion on 
the right bank of the Biobio estuary. 

Founded by Valdivia in 1541, but soon after captured 
by the Araucanians, and later visited by many calamities 
— earthquakes, inundations, and renewed attacks of the 
natives — Concepcion has nevertheless become the " capital 
of South Chili," and the chief manufacturing centre in 
the republic. Its prosperity is due partly to the dis- 
covery of the rich coalfields which extend for 100 miles 
through the neighbouring province of Arauco, and partly 
to its position close to Talcahuano Bay, a spacious inlet 

^ J. Ball, op. cit. p. 156. 



CHILI 



321 



entirely sheltered from the south-west winds, and forming 
incomparably the finest natural haven on the coast of Chili. 
Hence the chief naval station of the republic has been 
established at this point, and while extensive harbour 
works have long been in progress on the south side r»f 
the bay, the abundance of cheap fuel has fostered the 
development of metallurgic and other industries at Tome, 




Penco, — the original site of Concepcion, Coronel, Lota, and 
other places on the east side of Arauco I'ay. 

Strangers arriving for the first time at Coronel are 
scarcely prepared for the numerous indications of 
prosperity afforded by this busy little seaport, which 
stands on a sheltered inlet about midway between C(jn- 
cepcion and Arauco, and is the chief centre of the trade 
and industries of the surrounding district. Factory 

VOL. I ' Y 



322 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

chimneys meet the eye in all directions, the harbour is 
generally crowded with shipping, and Coronel, scarcely 
known before 1851, " when it was elevated to the dignity 
of a port, has now its civil governor and its maritime 
sub-delegate, a hospital and a lazaretto, consular repre- 
sentatives of the Great Powers, telegraphic communication, 
not merely with Chili and Peru, but with Europe and 
the world." ^ 

The yearly output of the local coal-fields already 
exceeds 500,000 tons, and copper also abounds in the 
district. Mining enterprise has been stimulated by the 
construction of a coast line of railway, which forms a 
southern extension of the Central Chilian system, and is 
carried over the Bioljio estuary at Concepcion by a 
magnificent viaduct with sixty-two massive piers, and a 
total length of 6000 feet, including approaches. The Pdo 
Malleco still farther south is spanned by another great 
railway bridge 1400 feet long and over 300 feet above 
the bed of the river. 

In the extreme south of the Chilian mainland are 
Valdivia, near the mouth of the Callecalle ; Maidlin, on the 
navigable estuary of like name, and Puerto Monti, at the 
head of Pteloncavi Bay. Ancud, at the western entrance 
of Chacao Channel, on the north side of Chiloe, is the 
San Carlos of the early Spanish settlers. In the flourish- 
ing days of Antarctic whale-fishing this place was much 
frequented by skippers, who here found good anchorage 
and some protection from the southern winds. Else- 
where in the Archipelagoes and the Magellanic lands 
there are no important settlements except the already 
mentioned Funta Arenas, the " Sandy Point " of English 
mariners. Founded in 1851 as an agricultural settle- 
ment, and afterwards transformed for a time to a 
^ Russell, op. cit. p. 35. 



CHILI 323 

Chilian convict-station, Punta Arenas has since acquired 
some importance as the headquarters of the Fuegian 
administration, and an indispensable port of call for 
all shipping passing through Magellan Strait. The 
local resources are not inconsiderable, and the settlers 
believe that bright prospects are secured for the capital 
of the Magellanic lands by the undoubted presence of 
gold-bearing reefs and coal-fields in the district, which is 
also well suited for sheep and cattle farming. 

Natural Resources — Agricultural and Mineral Wealth 

From the standpoint of its natural resources Chili has 
been divided into four distinct zones: (1) the purely 
agricultural region ; (2) the agricultural and mineral 
combined ; (3) the exclusively mineral ; (4) the forests 
and fishing - grounds. The first zone comprises the 
central provinces from Aconcagua to Yaldivia, a well- 
watered and fertile tract, in which husbandry and stock- 
breeding are fairly well developed. About half of the 
population is engaged in these pursuits, the chief products 
being wheat (yearly crop 30 million bushels), other cereals 
(9 million bushels), wine of good quality (yearly export 
70,000 to 80,000 gallons). In the mixed agricultural 
and mineral zone, comprising the province of Arauco and 
some neighbouring districts, coal, iron, copper, and brick- 
clay abound, while stock-breeding is carried on by the 
Araucanian Indians with great success. 

The third or exclusively mineral region includes all 
the waterless northern districts of Coquimbo, Atacama, 
Tarapaca, and Antofagasta, partly belonging to Chili 
proper, partly acquired by conquest from Peru and 
Bolivia. Here is concentrated a prodigious store of 
valuable organic and mineral products — nitrates, borax. 



324 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

iodine, gold, silver, copper, iron, gypsum, cobalt, manganese. 
The whole province of Atacama is one vast mine. 
Wherever the trouble has been taken to look for them, 
treasures of mineral ores or alkalies, valuable as articles 
of commerce, have been found. The amazing number 
of mines may be imagined from the fact that in 
the first district of Caracoles alone upwards of 4000 
silver-mines have already been surveyed and assessed. 
Caracoles, from caracol, a snail shell, is so named from 
the mountains consisting mostly of a rich fossiliferous 
shelly limestone, which abounds in ammonities. The 
mineral districts of Northern Chili extend southward by 
Illapel and Conchali towards Valparaiso. Of copper, 
which occurs chiefly in Coquimbo, the annual output 
exceeds 3600 tons; of silver, 360,000 lbs.; and of gold 
1100 lbs. 

The nitrate-fields cover an area of 225,000 acres, and 
are estimated still to contain 20 million tons of the 
nitrate of commerce. A large amount of British capital 
is invested in this industry, the annual yield of which 
rose from 550,000 tons in 1884 to 1,092,000 in 1896. 
Mineral waters — ferruginous, chloruretted, sulfurous, or 
charged with carbonic acid — occur especially at Cauquenes 
in the province of Colchagua, at Chilian in Nuble, and at 
Colina, Apoquindo, and Tiltil in Santiago. The forest 
zone, which contains an immense supply of timber, 
extends from the province of Valdivia southwards to 
Fuegia. Here arborescent vegetation is favoured by the' 
heavy rainfall, which renders agricultural pursuits un- 
profitable. The marine waters in the same high latitudes 
teem with animal life — several kinds of- edible fishes, sea- 
otters, seals, mussels, and other shell-fish. 

In the Araucanian stock-breeding districts it is 
pleasant to see the numerous herds of cattle and horses 



CHILI o 2 5 

grazing on the pasture-lands along all the river valleys. 
They are tended by the mounted Huao, who corresponds 
to the Gaucho of the Argentine pampas, but perhaps takes 
life somewhat more leisurely. He may often be seen, 
enveloped in his poncho, amusing himself, like the 
mediaeval sportsmen, with a tame falcon on his wrist, 
while the real work of looking a£t(^r the herds is done by 
a specimen of the fine breed of/native wolf-dogs crouching 
at his feet. y"^ 

Land Tenure — Emigration 

Unfortunately in the strictly agricultural districts 
there is a dark side to the picture presented by the 
general prosperity of the people. The conditions of the 
land tenure have given rise to much political strife, and 
undoubtedly constitute a source of danger to the social 
system. There are here no small holdings occupied, as in 
France, by an independent peasant class, nothing, in fact, 
but day labourers employed for a mere pittance on the 
large landed estates. The families of the oligarchy have 
secured for themselves the possession of the whole land, 
and the poor wretches hired by them are really worse 
off than slaves, or than the Eussian serfs before their 
emancipation. 

The abject poverty of the labouring classes in Chili 
can scarcely be paralleled elsewhere in the whole world, 
and in many districts the evil is intensified, as in 
Ireland before the potato famine, by , over-population. 
Official returns show that, owing to the prevailing 
misery no less than 30,000 labourers migrated in one 
year to Peru, where they found employment on the railway 
works then in progress. In proportion to its population 
no country in the world sent forth such a stream of 
emigrants as Chili did in the seventies or eighties. 



326 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

According to the carefully prepared returns of the 
National Society of Agriculture, there is 1 emigrant in 
Germany for every 200 of the population, 1 to 113 in 
England, 1 to 2000 in France, but in Chili at that time 
1 to every 7 6 ! Partly to repair these losses, and partly 
to develop the general resources of the country. Chili 
has sought to attract to its shores a share of the stream 
of European migration, but has naturally received the 
answer that, if prospects of settlers are so bright in the 
republic, why cannot the native workmen remain there ? 
In 1897 the total number of immigrants, chiefly from 
Italy and Spain, fell short of 600. 

Administration 

Although the war of independence, begun in 1810, 
was brought to a successful issue in 1818, the present 
Constitution dates only from the year 1833. It pro- 
vides for a legislature vested in the National Congress, 
consisting of a Senate and a Chamber of Deputies, the 
former elected for six years in the proportion of one for 
every three Deputies, and the latter elected for three 
years in the proportion of one for every 30,000 of 
the population. The Senators, who must have an income 
of £400 a year, are returned directly by provinces on the 
cumulative system of voting, the Deputies, who must 
have an income of £100, directly by departments, both 
bodies being chosen by the same electors. The executive 
is entrusted to a President, elected for five years by 
delegates nominated by the people. The President, who 
has a modified veto, but is not re-eligible, is assisted by 
a Council of State and a Cabinet of Ministers for the 
interior, foreign affairs, worship and colonisation, justice 
and public instruction, finance, war and marine, industry 
and public works. 




A -\ 



U 




NORTH CHILE 



fPlK It 



'■"xS^ 



_2l_ 



"^ O I. J \ 1 X 



i Y^m i -il*^' 



^n 



T (> .,s I 







'"I 



„^ 







\: N It () 



SobJ|, l'6336j000.100En^shSta.tuii_:il.l 






Jtaihray^ ttho-nn Ouui^ 



indua Edwiu-d Stuifor 



CHILI 327 

In religious matters complete tolerance is proclaimed 
by the Constitution, which respects and protects all creeds, 
while Eoman Catholicism is so far privileged that it is 
maintained by the State. Civil marriage, however, is the 
only form acknowledged by law. 

Education is free at the expense of the State, and in 
189 6 the public primary schools numbered 1250 with 
115,000 pupils. In the same year there were 412 
private schools with an attendance of over 18,000. 
Higher instruction is amply provided for by the 
University and the National Institute of Santiago, 
several lyceums, provincial colleges, and technical schools. 
In no other Hispano-American State is so much attention 
paid to the educational interests of the people. The 
leading statesmen have proclaimed the development of 
instruction as the basis of all true progress. Every 
province has its gymnasium, and the annual grant for 
educational purposes averages £250,000, an enormous 
sum for a revenue not exceeding £5,000,000. 

Although t]ie standing army is limited to about 9000 
men, there is a National Guard, in which all citizens 
from 20 to 40 years of age are obliged to serve, and which 
places a land force of 430,000 men at the disposal of the 
State in case of war. The naval forces, comprising five 
ironclads, several cruisers, destroyers, torpedoes, and gun- 
boats, is strong enough to maintain the supremacy of 
Chili over all the neighbouring States in the Pacific and 
Austral waters. 



CHAPTEE X 



ARGENTINA 

Boundaries, Areas, Populations — European Immigrants — Physical Fea- 
tures — General Survey — The Argentine and Patagonian Cordilleras — 
The Cordoba, Ventana, and Tandil Heights — Argentina, Fuegia, and 
Staten Island— The Pampas— The Patagonian Plateau— Hydrography 
— The Parana -Uruguay Basin and Delta — The Rios Bermejo and 
Salado — The Eio Dulce and the Cordoba Affluents— The Lower Parana 
and the Plate Estuary — The Upper and Lower Colorado Basins — The 
Patagonian Rivers and Lacustrine Basins — The Magellanic Lakes — 
Climate — Flora — Scenery of Gran Chaco — Fauna. 



Boundaries, Areas, Populations 

The Argentine Eepublic, or simply Argentina, is the 
largest and most populous of all the Hispano-American 
States in the Southern Continent. Here it is exceeded 
in these respects by Brazil alone, and even if the whole 
of Latin America be taken into account, it will still hold 
the second place for extent, being nearly double the size 
of Mexico, although for population greatly outnumbered 
by that State. Like Bolivia, Argentina is conterminous 
with five of the South American republics — Chili along 
its western and southern borders, where the still pending 
frontier questions were discussed in the last chapter ; 
Bolivia in the north ; Paraguay, Brazil, and Uruguay in 
the east. As determined by the Convention of 1876, 



ARGENTINA 329 

the boundary towards Paraguay coincides with the Eio 
Pilcomayo from the Bolivian frontier to its confluence 
with the Eio Paraguay, then with this river to the 
Parana confluence, beyond which it ascends the Parana 
to its junction on the left bank with the Eio I-guazu, 
where it strikes the Brazilian frontier. 

By the Convention of 1890 the line towards Brazil 
ascends the I-guazu and its San Antonio tributary to 
its source, from which point it runs in a straight line to 
the Upper Paperi, and thence down that river southwards 
to its confluence with the Uruguay. Then the Uruguay 
forms the boundary towards the republic of Uruguay 
from 30° S. lat. to the Plate estuary, which separates the 
two States in siich a way as to leave to Argentina the 
small but strategically important island of Martin Garcia. 

Pending a settlement of the Chilian frontier question, 
the actual extent of Argentina cannot be accurately 
determined, and in point of fact the approximate estimates 
vary from about 1,200,000 to 1,320,000. This vast 
region, making about one-third of the whole of Europe, 
formerly constituted a number of autonomous States 
loosely banded together for general and defensive purposes 
under the name of Provincias Unidas del Bio de la Plata. 
But since 1853, when the confederacy was joined by 
Buenos Ayres, these semi-independent States have been 
merged in a single republic comprising fourteen provinces 
and nine territories, with areas and populations as 
under : — 

Area in Population 

Provinces. ^q^ ,nilgs_ (IS95). 

Buenos Ayres \ ^^^ 663, 854 1 

(Federal District) J 
Buenos Ayresj ggOQO 921,168 

(Province) J 
Santa Fe 18,000 397,188 



1 Population (30th March 1899), 773,351. 



330 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TEAVEL 









Area iu 


Population 


Provinces. g^_ n.ileg. 


(1S9d). 


Eiitre Rios 45,000 


292,019 


Corrieutes 




54,000 


239,618 


Rioja 


. 


31,500 


69,502 


Catamarca . 




31,500 


90,161 


San Juan . 




29,700 


84,251 


Mendoza . 




54,000 


116,186 


Cordova 




54,000 


351,223 


San Luiz . 




18,000 


81,450 


Santiago del Estero 




31,500 


161,502 


Tucunian . 




13,500 


215,742 


Salta . 




45,000 


118,015 


Jujuy 




27,000 


49,713 


Total Piov 


inces 


. 515,815 


3,851,542 


Territories. 




Misiones 23,932 


33,163 


Formosa 






73,000 


4, 829 


Chaco 






85,000 


10,422 


Pampa 






91,000 


25,914 


Piio Negro . 






. 124,000 


9,241 


Neuguen . 






57,000 


14,517 


Chubut . 






154,000 


3,748 


Santa Cruz 






. 182,500 


1,058 


Tierra del Fuego 




13,000 


477 






Tot£ 


il . . 1,319.247 


3,954,911 



Here it will be noticed that the territories, by which 
are to be understood the unsettled districts still thinly 
occupied by the aborigines, comprise nearly two-thirds 
of the whole State, with a population that may almost 
be considered a negligible quantity. In fact the natives 
have almost disappeared from all the provinces, and are 
reduced to a mere handful — some 30,000 altogether — 
in the territories. Many of these, especially in Chaco, 
are unreclaimable savages, who are rapidly dying out, not 
by absorption, a process which has long ceased to operate, 
but by absolute extinction. Nor were the aborigines at 
any time very numerous in a region consisting to a large 



ARGENTINA 331 

extent of open steppe-lauds, treeless plateaux, or marshy 
^voodlauds, whicli were quite incapable of supporting 
numerous populations living in a state of nature. Hence 
the European settlers have here preserved their racial 
purity to a greater extent than in most other parts of 
Latin America. 

European Immigrants 

Nevertheless, the present inhabitants of Argentina are 
of a less homogeneous character than those of the other 
Hispano-American States. In recent years immigrants 
have flocked in large numbers to this region, not only 
from the peninsula, but also from the British Isles, 
Germany, Italy, and other parts of Europe, and these 
fresh arrivals have not yet had time to merge in a single 
nationality with the earlier Spanish settlers. In many 
places they are massed in numerous independent ethnical 
communities, speaking their own languages, following 
their own religions, customs, and traditions, and keeping 
socially aloof from the indigenous Spanish-speaking in- 
habitants. In 1896 they were reinforced by as many 
as 102,000 newcomers, and in the period of twenty-five 
years ending in 1899 the total number of immigrants 
exceeded two millions. From the subjoined table of 
foreign settlers, calculated for the year 1895, it will be 
seen that the great majority came from the South 
European countries of Neo- Latin speech, and as these 
naturally tend to merge more rapidly than others in 
the Spanish - speaking population, the expectations 
of certain political economists that the Anglo-Saxons, 
or at least the Anglo-Teutons, might become the 
controlling element in Argentina, seem doomed to 
disappointment : — 



332 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Italians 492,636 

Spaniards 198,685 

French 94,098 

British 21,788 

Germans ......... 17,143 

Swiss 14,789 

Austrians 12,803 

Portuguese 2,269 

Jews and Sundries 32,184 

Total . . . 886,395 



Physical Features — G-eneral Survey 

The popular idea that Argentina consists mainly of a 
boundless level plain, for which the early settlers retained 
the old Quichua term 'pam'pa, is probably due to the 
impression produced on strangers for the first time 
arriving in the Plate estuary by the uniform aspect of 
the surrounding lands. But a closer study of the actual 
relations shows that this view is subject to profound 
modification. True it is that a great part of the country 
was formerly flooded by the already described Pampean 
Sea, and consequently still presents a nearly horizontal 
surface, with a slight, in some places a scarcely perceptible, 
incline towards the Atlantic. But the great inland 
basin was not only contracted, especially in the north- 
west, by lofty ranges belonging to the Andean system, 
but was also broken by high mountain masses, which 
rose at several points above the surrounding waters. 
Moreover, the primeval uniformity of the marine bed was 
probably in early Tertiary times disturbed by movements 
of upheaval arrested at different levels, while the 
Pampean Sea itself was limited southwards by the 
Patagonian plateau, which has certainly been dry land 
also since Tertiary times. 

These general features of a former, but still com- 



ARGENTINA 333 

paratively recent, geological age, are necessarily retiected 
in the present conformation of the land. Hence, although 
the pampas may be regarded as its most conspicuous 
feature, they are found to be greatly diversified by 
Andean highlands in the north-west between the Pil- 
comayo and Bermejo basins, and farther south in the 
province of Mendoza and Patagonia, as well as by the 
isolated Sierra de Cordoba in the centre and the Tandil and 
Yentana heights between the Plate and Colorado basins. 
Further variety is imparted to the wiiole region by 
the different elevations now presented by the pampas 
themselves, which between the Cordoba hills and the 
Rio Salado form a gently inclined terrace falling from 
3000 to about 600 or 700 feet above the sea, and lower 
down constitute a nearly level plain gradually falling 
from 250 to 120 feet, and extending round the Plate 
estuary all the way to the Atlantic. Although largely 
due to the former upheaval of the bed of the inland sea, 
these elevations also represent a large amount of detritus, 
either accumulated in the form of talus at the foot of 
the hills on the higher grounds, or else carried down 
and slowly deposited as alluvial matter on the lower 
grounds by the running waters from the surrounding- 
Brazilian and Andean uplands. Such in broad outline 
would appear to be the geological framework of the 
Argentine lands, where are accordingly to be considered 
the western (Argentine and Patagonian) Cordilleras, the 
isolated central and southern heights, the steppe -like 
pampas and the Patagonian tableland. 

The Argentine and Patagonian Cordilleras 

Although east of the main Andean range, which 
forms the divide between the Chilian and Arojentine 



334 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

States, there is no continuous parallel mountain chain, 
the system nevertheless extends at several points to 
considerable distances eastwards, either in connected or 
even parallel ridges, or else in separate groups scattered 
over the plains. 

In the extreme north-west the Cerro de las Granadas 
is a conspicuous object close to the Bolivian frontier, 
and here a distinct line of snowy crests disposed in the 
direction from north to south maintains a mean altitude 
of over 11,000 feet. Farther south follow the Pasto 
Gi^ande, Acay, Cachi, and other peaks, which are also 
snow-clad throughout the year. West of the Jujuy 
basin the Nevada de Chani and the Tres Cruces tower 
to heights of 18,000 feet and upwards, while the Zenta 
ridge, with summits approaching 17,000 feet, is crossed 
by the Ze7ita Pass at an altitude of 14,800 feet. The 
whole of this Alpine region shows clear traces of former 
glaciation, although at present, owing to the absence of 
moisture and the tropical heats, the normal snow-line 
falls little below 17,000 feet. 

West of the Tucuman plains, where the Andean 
system is greatly contracted, a lofty range running for 
about 30 miles north-east and south-west between the 
Rio Juramento and the sources of the Eioja takes its 
name from its culminating peak, Aconquija, which was 
first scaled in 1883 by Eodolfo Hauthal and by him 
estimated at 17,740 feet. Some 130 miles south-west 
of Aconquija rises the superb Nevada de Famatina, which 
is connected with the Andean plateau by a ridge parallel 
to the main axis, and has an estimated height of 20,700 
feet. 

The Famatina range, which traverses the province 
of Ptioja, is separated from the Great Andes by the 
so-called Ante- Cordillera or Pre -Cordillera, a verv old 



ARGENTINA 



33 5 



and formerly continuous chain, which is now broken 
into several detached sections by tlie erosive action of 
the head-waters of the Eio Verniejo. Here the connecting 
plateau, 13,000 to 14,000 feet high, is dominated hy 
several isolated crests, which rise 4000 or 5000 feet 
above the surrounding puna. Such are the snowy peaks 
of Boncte, Salto, Manrique, Totora, and several otlier 




ACONCAGUA : PASO DE LOS CONTRABAXDISTAS. 



summits, all exceeding 18,000 feet, and consecpiently 
rising well above the snow-line. 

Yet this bleak region of the puna, which is exposed 
to fierce gales and blizzards, is traversed in several 
directions by the so-called inrcas or mule-tracks leading 
over the Great Andes down to the Copiapo valley in the 
Atacama desert. Farther south the Cordillera del Tie/re, 
another section of the same system, penetrates at a height 



336 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

of over 16,000 feet into the province of Mendozii, where 
it is connected by lateral ridges with Aconcagua. Here 
the plateau is crossed by the main route between Buenos 
Ayres and Santiago, and here is the abeady described 
Cumbre Pass, which will soon be pierced by the trans- 
Continental railway advancing both from the Chilian 
and the Argentine sides. 

Beyond the province of Mendoza, where the Great 
Andes culminate about the Chilian frontier in Aconcagua 
and Tupungato (see p. 278), the main axis again contracts, 
developing a deep curve westwards, while the Argentine 
and Patagonian offshoots of the Cordillera diminish 
steadily in altitude southwards. Beyond the Mayiw 
volcano, which still rises to a height of over 17,600 feet, 
the isolated Nevddo de San Rafael falls to little over 
16,000 feet. It is separated by a broad plateau, 
formerly a large lacustrine basin, from the Malargiie 
ridge, which is crossed by the Butaco Pass at a height 
of scarcely 5000 feet. But in the transitional region 
between Argentina proper and Patagonia the Ante- 
Cordilleras broaden out eastwards, and attain great 
elevations in some isolated groups, such as the Cerro 
Payen in the Upper Colorado basin, and farther south 
the Sierra Auca Mahinda, rising, according to some 
estimates, above 16,000 feet. 

It is, however, doubtful whether these eastern uplands 
belong geologically to the Andean system. Some light 
has been thrown on this point by the explorations of 
Otto Nordenskjold in South-Western Patagonia, where 
the snowy Cordillera, consisting of folded metamorphic 
schists, is shown to be separated from the dry pampa 
tableland of Tertiary age by a broad zone of transition, 
with lofty mountains formed partly of younger contorted 
slates, partly of horizontal or slightly inclined Tertiary 



ARGENTINA 3 3 7 

rocks, eruptive or sedimentary. " These mountains, on 
the one hand, topographically form a direct continuation 
of the Cordillera, and on the other are separated by 
valleys that sometimes form extensive lowlands of a 
character resembling that of Patagonia, and contain 
rivers which mostly run to the Pacific. ... It seems 
that the isolated mountains, even the actual pampa hills, 
were once joined to the Central Cordillera. Pavers 
flowing from this to the east afterwards cut out valleys 
that were considerably widened by the action of great 
glaciers extending far outside the mountains." ^ 



The Cordoba, Ventana, and Tandil Heights 

That the isolated heights which rose above the surface 
of the Pampean Sea — Sierra de Cordoba in the central 
parts, Sierras Ventana and Tandil south of the Plate 
estuary — have no physical connection with the Andean 
system is evident both from the position of these groups 
and from their geological constitution. The Cordoba 
system, prolonged south-westwards in the Sierra de San 
Luis, or de la Punta, consists of several parallel ridges 
traversing the pampas for about 300 miles in the normal 
direction from north to south at altitudes ranging from 
3000 to 5000 feet, and culminating in the Champaqui 
peak of the central ridge (7550 feet). In the San Luis 
section the highest point is Tomolasta (6850 feet), 
called also Cerro de las Minas from its rich gold-bearing 
quartz reefs. The prevailing gneiss and other crystalline 
formations are replaced towards the north-west by a 
ridge of igneous origin, with a chain of extinct volcanoes 
terminating westwards in the trachytic Cerro de Yerba 
Buena (5400 feet). 

1 Geogr. Jour., October 1897, p. 409. 
VOL. I Z 



338 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Granites, gneiss, quartzites, and Archaean rocks of 
great age also prevail in the Ventana and Taudil chains, 
which are disposed mainly in the direction from west to 
east between the Plate and Colorado basins. These very 
ancient uplands, ages older than the Andean system, 
have, like the Brazilian highlands, been subjected to an 
enormous amount of weathering. At one time they were 
probably amongst the loftiest ranges on the glol^e, but 
have now been reduced by meteoric agencies to hills of 
quite moderate elevation, nowhere exceeding 3800 feet. 
Although one section of the Tandil system bears the 
name of Sierra del Volcan, no recent eruptive rocks are 
anywhere to be seen, and the term " Volcan " would 
appear to be, not a Spanish, but an Indian word meaning 
a gap or breach, in reference to the broad depression 
separating the Volcan ridge from the Tandil range 
proper. 

Argentine Fuegia, and Staten Island 

In the Argentine section of Fuegia (see p. 270) the 
Patagonian steppe is continued beyond Magellan Strait 
to the southern uplands, skirting the north side of Beagle 
Channel. As shown in the last chapter, these uplands 
belong unquestionably to the Andean system, and are 
continued seawards by the rugged and almost uninhabit- 
able Staten Island. This terminal point of the continent 
towards the south-east consists almost entirely of a rocky 
snow-clad ridge about 3000 feet high, and 44 miles 
long, with an average breadth of scarcely 5 miles. It 
is separated from King Charles South Land by Le Maire 
Strait, 15 to 18 miles wide, and the whole island, 200 
square miles in extent, is of such a forbidding aspect 
that no attempt has ever been made to form a permanent 
settlement on its inhospitable shores. Its only in- 



ARGENTINA 339 

habitants are the men in charge of the lighthouse which 
has been erected at CVy^e San Juan, the terminal head- 
land towards the east. 



The Pampas 

According to local usage the term pampa, meaning 
any open level tract, is restricted to the treeless, 
grassy plains which occupy most of the space between 
the Rios Salado and Negro north and south, and 
stretch from the Andean plateau eastwards to the Lower 
Parana and beyond the Plate estuary to the Atlantic 
seaboard. From the pampas proper are therefore 
excluded the northern regions of Entre Rios between 
the Parana and the Uruguay, and Gran Chaco between 
the Salado and the Bolivian and Paraguayan frontiers. 

Although these extensive tracts stand at much about 
the same levels as the rest of the Argentine lowlands, — 
generally under 500 feet above the sea, — and un- 
doubtedly formed part of the old marine basin, they still 
present certain distinctive features which justify the 
popular usage. Lying much nearer to the Tropics, 
they enjoy a warmer and moister climate than the true 
pampas, and are traversed in various directions by large 
perennial streams, while herbaceous growths are largely 
replaced in Gran Chaco by thorny scrub, palm-groves, 
and even dense arboreal vegetation. 

Very different is the general, but by no means 
uniform, aspect of the pampas, which in the north are 
diversified with stagnant saline basins glittering in the 
sun, and farther south present a boundless expanse of 
tall grasses changing with the seasons, and heaving like 
a billowy sea with every breath of wind. Their appear- 
ance at dawn in the summer months has been pictured 



340 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

by Sir Horace Kumbold in vivid language : " No words 
can convey an adequate idea of the beauty and freshness 
of the prairie at this early hour. The young sun floods 
the low and perfectly level horizon with a flush of pink 
and yellow light. At once you realise the fuH force of 
the hackneyed image, which compares the boundless 
expanse to an ocean solitude, for the effect is truly that 
of sunrise out upon the face of the waste of waters. The 
fiery disk emerges out of what seems a sea of verdure, 
all burned and brown though everything be in reality, 
and in its slanting rays the tip of each blade of grass, 
the giant thistles with their rose-purple crowns, the 
graceful floss-like panicles of the pampas grass, just 
touched by the breeze and all glittering with dew, 
undulate before the eye, like the successive sparkling 
lines that mark the hazy roll of the deep in the dawn 
of a tropical calm. This tender tonality lasts but a 
very short time, the sun shooting upwards with a speed 
and force that at once completely transforms the picture ; 
the scorching agencies of light revealing it in its true 
parched colours, and reducing it to a burning arch above, 
and a scorching and featureless flat below. The fresh 
rippling ocean turns into a weary wilderness, staring up 
at a breathless, pitiless sky." •" 

Marvellously varied are the feelings experienced in 
this wilderness by the wanderer who is at all alive to 
the grandeur of nature, or endowed with the least poetic 
fancy. Sublime appears to him the vast expanse of this 
seemingly interminable ocean of grass and flowers, while 
the solemn stillness, broken only by the occasional cry 
of a bird or the roar of the jaguar, bears him away from 
mother earth to the far-off, unknown, and dimly-realised 
sphere of some other and more ethereal region. In the 

^ The Ch-eat Silver River, p. 273. 



AEGENTINA 341 

presence of such an awe-inspiring solitude his thoughts 
are unconsciously drawn to dwell upon the idea of 
eternity ; a deep and yet a pleasant sadness takes pos- 
session of the thoughtful mind, a feeling intensified at 
the going down of the sun, and in the darkness of night 
merging in an overpowering sense of helplessness and 
terror. Many who, after realising a fortune, have re- 
turned to Europe, are often again seized with an irresist- 
ible yearning for these dreary wastes, and, carried away by 
a veritable home-sickness, have given up everything in 
the old land in order to begin life afresh in the pampas. 
Nor is it the beauties of nature in a landscape of 
such monotony that awaken a love of these treeless 
plains, although the traveller may often be arrested in 
mute amazement at some fascinating but evanescent 
picture. Atmospheric effects, seldom missing on bright 
days, will suddenly transform a distant thistle-field to a 
forest of the finest timber, while the grass sprouting 
round a dreary marsh assumes the appearance of a 
numerous troop of phantom horsemen. But most fre- 
quent are the mirages. The wayfarer is mocked by the 
sight of a watery expanse sparkling in the sun, and 
when, perhaps tormented with a burning thirst, he 
gallops forward, he finds the vision still receding in the 
distance. Experienced residents are doubtless not de- 
ceived by such phenomena, but their knowledge is due, 
not so much to their own better judgment as to the 
indifference of their horses, who are never the dupes of 
these fallacious appearances. 

The Patagonian Plateau 

Southwards the Argentine pampas gradually merge 
in the Patagonian steppe, which occupies the whole 



342 CO.MPEXDIUxM OF GEOGKAPHY AXD TKAVEL 

region between the Andean uplands and the Atlantic, 
and extends beyond Magellan Strait into East Fuegia. 
As shown by the river valleys, it is inclined gently 
eastwards, and like the pampas is disposed at different 
levels, with an inner zone ranging in terraces from 2000 
to 500 feet (the plateau), and an outer falling from 
500 feet to sea-level (the seaboard). 

The plateau region presents some remarkable features, 
the explanation of which has given rise to nuich discus- 
sion amongst geologists. The whole land, evidently of 
Tertiary formation, is strewn with thick horizontal layers 
of rolled shingle down to a depth of 50 feet for a dis- 
tance of 600 miles north and south and 200 east and 
west. The layers consist chiefly of porphyries, recent 
igneous rocks, and metamorphic slates, and in the lacus- 
trine deposits, composed of sand and volcanic tuffs, are 
embedded great quantities of animal remains, and the 
question is, whence came these prodigious masses of 
tjravels, which extend even under the Atlantic waters at 
least as far as the Falkland Islands, The only possible 
answer seems to be that they are due to the same 
atmospheric agencies which have reduced the Brazilian 
and Yentana uplands by many thousands of feet, and 
of the Patagonian pre-Cordilleras.have left nothing but 
a few fragments still scattered over the western plains. 
Much of the debris was, no doubt, contributed by glacial 
action, its horizontal or slightly inclined position sug- 
gestincr that the moraines and other detritus were 
originally deposited in the Atlantic waters, which at 
that time must have covered a great part of the steppe. 

The glacial period must therefore have been followed 
by the phenomenon of upheaval, or else of subsidence of 
the sea, of which unmistakable indications have in fact 
been discovered. Near Possession Bay, at the eastern 



ARGENTINA 34o 

entrance of Magellan Strait, a lagoon standing 160 feet 
above the present sea-level is still inhabited by shell-fish 
of the same species as those in the surrounding waters, 
and reference has already been made to some very old 
kitchen-middens which, since their formation, have been 
raised to a considerable height above their former level. 
In this connection it should be mentioned that amongst 
the animal remains were the skulls and other bones of 
men of a low type. But they were found, not in the 
tableland gravels, but in the more recent clays of the 
Eio Negro valley. 

Besides the gravels, extensive tracts are covered with 
shifting dunes of coarse sand, and also with fine sand, 
which have been carried by the winds to great distances. 
They cover vast spaces, especially in the Colorado and 
Negro basins, stretching at some points right across the 
Continent from the Andean foothills, where they appear 
to have originated. They are certainly not of marine 
origin, but seem to be derived from the immense 
quantities of debris deposited by the glaciers of the Ice 
Age in the form of moraines at the entrance of the upland 
valleys. 

Despite their more dreary and monotonous aspect, the 
Patagonian plains have much the same fascination for 
travellers as the Argentine pampas. Darwin, who felt 
the impression years after his visit to this region, asks, 
why have these arid wastes taken so firm possession of 
his mind ? "I can scarcely analyse these feelings, but 
it must be partly owing to the free scope given to the 
imagination. The plains of Patagonia are boundless, for 
they are scarcely practicable, and hence unknown. They 
bear the stamp of having lasted for ages, and there 
appears no limit to their duration through future time."^ 

1 Voyage of the Beagle. 



344 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Mr. W. H. Hudson also found the old charm long 
surviving in all its freshness. " After all the discomforts 
and sufferings endured in a desert cursed with eternal 
barrenness, the returned traveller finds in after years 
that it still keeps its hold on him, that it shines brighter 
in memory and is dearer to him than any other region 
he may have visited. In Patagonia the monotony of 
the plains, or expanse of low hills, the universal unre- 
lieved grayness of everything, and the absence of animal 
forms and objects new to the eye, leave the mind open 
and free to receive an impression of visible nature as a 
whole. One gazes on the prospect as on the sea, for it 
stretches away, sea-like, without change, into infinitude ; 
but without the sparkle of water, the changes of hue 
which shadows and sunlight and nearness and distance 
give, and motions of waves and white flashes of foam. 
It has a look of antiquity, of desolation, of eternal peace, 
of a desert that has been a desert from of old, and will 
continue a desert for ever." -^ 



Hydrography — The Parana-Uruguay Basin and Delta 

Apart from a few closed lacustrine basins in the 
pampas and South-West Patagonia, the whole of Argentina 
drains mainly in a south-easterly direction to the 
Atlantic. In Argentina proper nearly all the running 
waters find their way either through the Parana or the 
Uruguay to the Plate estuary, or through the Colorado 
and the Negro directly to the coast. But in Patagonia, 
where the Continent contracts to relatively narrow 
limits, and increases in aridity southwards, no large 
fluvial systems are developed, and the comparatively 
slight discharge is effected through the Chubut, the 

1 Idle Days in Patagonia. 



ARGENTINA 



;4o 



Santa Cruz, the Gallegos, and a few other independent 
coast-streams. Even in the Colorado basin many of the 
affluents are intermittent, or else run out in saline 
marshes or lagoons without reaching the main channel 
at all. In a word, the collective volume of all the other 
Argento - Patagonian rivers is almost a negligil3le 




RIO SANTA CKUZ. 



quantity compared with that of the mighty I'arana- 
Uruguay system, with a catchment basin of 1,200,000 
square miles, and a mean discharge of 535,000 cubic 
feet per second. 

But not more than al)out one lialf of this basin 
is comprised within the Argentine State, where the 
Uruguay is entirely a frontier river, while some of the 
western affluents flow in their upper courses through 



346 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Bolivian territory. The Parana itself does not belong 
altogether to Argentina until it is joined at the Tres 
Bocas near Corrientes by its great tributary, the 
Paraguay, from the north. Below the confluence the 
discharge is greater than at the head of the Plate 
estuary, the contributions received from the feeble 
pampas affluents during its lower course being insufficient 
to compensate for the loss by evaporation. Nevertheless 
these affluents have the effect of greatly widening the 
fluvial bed, which expands to a breadth of 40 miles 
during the floods in the vast Parana -Uruguay delta 
above Buenos Ayres. Formerly this deltaic region 
formed part of the marine gulf, which penetrated nearly 
300 miles farther inland than at present. The tides 
even still ascend both the Parana and the Uruguay for 
a distance of nearly 100 miles ; but the fluvial siltings 
have gradually filled in the broad marine channel all the 
way from the present head of the estuary to Diamante, 
where the lower course of the Parana bends round from 
south to east. 

A short distance above the mouth of the main channel 
the monotony of the surrounding treeless flats is relieved 
by the exuberant vegetation of Delta Island, where 
whole forests of peach trees are in full bloom in the 
month of August, and where the seiha also {Erythrina 
cristagalli) unfolds its gorgeous blossom. These islands 
of the delta are formed of extremely fertile alluvial 
deposits, which is often accumulated high above the 
periodical floodings. Many are swept Ijodily away by 
the current and reformed lower down, so that the 
navigable channels are constantly shifting. But the 
main branch, known as the Parana de las Palmas, is 
accessible to large vessels even in August, when the 
water is lowest. Besides this branch, the delta is inter- 



AKGENTINA 347 

sected by several other large arms, and the Parana has 
altogether as many as fourteen mouths, all subject to 
periodical inundations. 



The Eios Bermejo and Salado 

South of the Mio Corrientes, which partly drains tlie 
shallow and sliifting Ibera lagoon, the Parana is joined 
on its left bank by only one notable affluent, the 
Guahrjuay, which winds through the province of Entre- 
Kios nearly parallel both with the main stream and the 
Lower Uruguay. After a sluggish course of about 250 
miles through this Argentine " Mesopotamia," the 
Gualeguay falls, not into the Parana itself, but into the 
Favon, one of those lateral channels which are inter- 
mittently flushed by the Parana flood waters in the 
region of the delta. 

On its right bank the Paraguay, which is here the 
frontier river towards the State named from it, receives 
the already described Pilcommjo and the Bermejo 
( Vermejo), both rising in the Bolivian Cordilleras, and 
both winding for hundreds of miles in a parallel south- 
easterly direction through the Argentine territory of 
Gran Chaco. The Bermejo, which in its main features 
greatly resembles the Pilcomayo, has a total length of 
1300 miles, but is of little use for any practical purposes. 
Below Oran it is joined by the San Francisco, a stream 
of equal size, which drains the province of Jujuy, and 
although both are accessible to light craft above the 
confluence, the main stream lower down is so obstructed 
by shoals and reefs, that it is scarcely navigable even by 
the few flat-bottomed boats that ply on the lower reaches. 
In this part of its course the fall is so slight that the 
current is continuallv wandering- right and left into side 



348 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

branches and shallow lagoons, and about the year 1850 
the whole river shifted its bed some 12 miles farther 
north to the Bio Tmco. The old channel is now dry, 
and the Teuco enters the Paraguay through two arms 
at Puerto Bermejo opposite Villa del Pilar. 

Below the Paraguay confluence the Parana receives 
on its right bank only one perennial stream, the Rio 
Salado, often called the Rio del Juramento (" Eiver of 
the Oath "), because it was on its banks that Belgrano's 
army swore to achieve the independence of the country 
or perish in the attempt. The Salado, which draws its 
farthest supplies from the ISTevados de Cachi, is known 
in its upper course as the Rio Guachipas, and lower 
down as the Rio del Pasaje, where it is crossed by the 
main route between Tucuman and Salta. 

In its meandering course through Gran Chaco, where 
the current is scarcely perceptible, it overflows into a 
labyrinth of lateral branches, backwaters, and shallow 
lagoons, which during the floods are all merged in a 
great fresh-water lake. But after the subsidence the 
water in its lower reaches becomes somewhat brackish ; 
hence this sluggish stream here takes the name of the 
Salado or " Salt Ptiver," which it retains to its confluence 
with the Parana at Santa Pe above Eosario. 



The Rio Dulce and the Cordoba Affluents 

South of the Salado the Pampean plains are inter- 
sected by numerous watercourses, the direction of whose 
valleys shows that they belong to the Parana fluvial 
system. But they seem for the most part to be feeble 
survivals from a former more vigorous period in the life 
history of the great artery. "With the steadily increasing 
dryness of the climate, their volume has continued to 



aeCtENtina 349 

fall away to such an extent that one or two have become 
intermittent tributaries, reaching the main stream only 
during the floods, while all the others have long given 
up the struggle to attain their natural goal, and die out 
in the marshy depressions or shallow lagoons dotted over 
the grassy steppe lauds. 

Even the Rio Dulce, which has the largest catchment 
basin, including both the Salta uplands and the Acon- 
quija heights, ramifies in numerous shifting channels 
aimlessly over the plains, and at last runs out in the 
Porongos morass, which during the inundations becomes 
a temporary lake communicating southwards with the 
Mar Chiquita (" Little Sea "), a real lake in places over 
100 feet deep between the Sierra de Cordoba and the 
Lower Salado. 

From the Cordoba and San Luiz heights descend five 
torrents, which are rather numbered than named, in 
their order from north to south, the Mios Frimero, Segundo, 
Tercero, Cuarto, and Quinto (" First," " Second," " Third," 
" Fourth " and " Fifth "). These also for the most part 
run out in the Saladillo lagoons and other saline 
depressions, so that the Parana receives no contributions 
from all these affluents except through the Carcarana 
{Car car anal), which is formed by the junction of the 
Terceiro and Cuarto at Saladillo, and reaches the main 
stream a little north of Eosario. 



The Lower Parana and the Plate Estuary 

. Nevertheless the Parana has survived all these losses, 
and between the Paraguay confluence and the Plate estu- 
ary still remains one of the great rivers of the world, 
navigable by large deep-sea vessels for a total distance of 
1200 or 1300 miles. 



350 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

The section between Santa Fe and Eosario has a total 
breadth of 25 or 30 miles, not, however, flowing in a 
continuous stream, but between countless elongated 
islands, forming an intricate network of channels and 
riachos, or " little rivers," some of which are over two 
miles wide. These secondary branches wind away 
tortuously amid the impenetrable stretches of jungle, 
developing a trackless system of waterways continu- 
ally breaking away from and again uniting with 
the main arteries. " This will give some idea of 
the magnitude of this stvipendous Parana, with its 
myriad shifting isles drifting on to fill up channel 
here, swell promontory there, till they compel the 
waters to force out new passages through the great 
alluvial wilderness." ^ 

The estuary, the Bio de la Plata, formed by the junc- 
tion of the Parana with the Uruguay, and 6 2 miles wide 
at Monte Video, discharges more water into the ocean 
than any other river in the New World, the Amazons 
alone excepted. During the floods the volume rolled 
down by the Parana is estimated at 1,650,000 cubic feet 
per second, while the Uruguay contributes 500,000, 
making a total of 2,150,000. As this immense body of 
water is heavily charged with sedimentary matter, the 
silting process, which has already reduced the marine 
inlet to less than half its former size, is still in progress. 
The mean depth at Monte Video is already reduced to 
less than 15 feet, and constant dredging is needed to 
enable large vessels to approach the quays of Buenos 
Ayres. Shoals and quicksands are everywhere forming 
and reforming at a rapid rate, and the time is approaching 
when the "Great Silver Eiver," at present about 5000 
square miles in extent, with a mean width of 35 or 40 

' E. F. Knight, Cruise of the Falcon, vol. ii. p. 34. 



ARGENTINA 351 

miles, mvist be reduced to a single narrow channel winding 
between low muddy banks to the ocean. 



The Upper and Lower Colorado Basins 

In South Argentina the deterioration of the climate 
in the direction of excessive dryness has resulted in a 
curious hydrographic phenomenon, which seems best 
indicated by the term disintegration. The vast Colorado 
basin, which must have formerly comprised an area of 
probably over 200,000 square miles, has been broken up in 
such a way as to form two absolutely independent systems 
— an extensive lacustrine region in the north, with no 
present seaward outlet, and in the south the Rio Colorado 
itself, reduced to about an eighth of its former basin, but 
still flowing in a perennial and tolerably copious stream 
to the Atlantic between the Plate and Negro rivers. 

The closed lacustrine system, which has long ceased 
to communicate at any point with the lower (Eio Colorado) 
section, covers a great part of the provinces of San Juan 
and Mendoza, with the western half of the Pampa terri- 
tory. In the extreme north the large lakes known as 
the Lagunas de Guanacache, which are intermittently fed 
by the Rio San Juan and the western Rio Bermejo, 
send their overflow through the Rio Desagiiadero to 
Lake Behedero (the " Drinker "), so called because it acts 
like a sponge in absorbing the surface waters of all the 
surrounding saline marshy tracts. Then this shallow 
lagoon, which expands and shrinks from season to season, 
communicates during the floods through another desa- 
guadero, called also a Rio Salado, with the broad but 
shallow Lake Urre-Lafquen, that is, the Laguna Amarga 
(" Bitter Lagoon "), so named from the intense salinity of 
its waters. 



352 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

During its rambling course over the plains the Salaiio 
receives irregular supplies on its right bank through 
the Pdos Diamante and Atuel, which descend from the 
Argento-Chilian Cordillera south of Tupungato. But 
the stream which formerly reached the Bebedero from 
Aconcagua has ceased to flow, and there are other indica- 
tions, such as the increasing saline efflorescences about 
the margins of the lagoons, that the process of desiccation 
is still in progress throughout the whole of this lacustrine 
region. 

Traces only remain of the channel, through which 
the Laguna Amarga formerly found an outlet through 
the Colorado to the Atlantic, and this river is thus now 
completely separated from the chain of shallow lagoons, 
desaguaderos, swamps, and saline depressions, which at 
one time constituted by far the larger part of its upper 
basin. At present the Colorado valley is confined to a 
relatively narrow strip of the pampas between the parallel 
of the Laguna Amarga and the Kio Negro, the main stream 
being formed by the confluence of the Rio Grande and 
the Rio cle Barrancas, which have tlieir sources on the 
eastern slopes of the Cordillera near the Peteroa volcano. 
Although receiving no tributaries in its course through 
the parched pampean plains, where no rain falls for years, 
it never runs dry, while in summer it is swollen by the 
melting snows of the Andes to a deep and rapid stream 
of great volume from 300 to 400 yards wide. 

The Patagonian Rivers and Lacustrine Basins 

The Rio Negro, which forms the divide between 
Argentina proper and Patagonia, traverses the steppe in 
a valley nearly parallel to that of the Colorada. Like 
its neighbour, it maintains a perennial current witlK)ut 



ARGENTINA 353 

receiving any supplies throughout its lower course to the 
Atlantic near the Gulf of San Matias. The Kio Negro, 
or Curru Levfu, i.e. " Blackwater," said to be so named 
not from its colour, which in fact is sea-green, but from 
the dangerous reefs obstructing its navigation, is formed 
by the convergence of two main branches, the Neuqtien, 
flowing from Lake Mallarco near the Chilian volcano 
7000 feet above sea-level, and the Rio Limay {Limay 
Leufu), which has its source in the romantic Lake 
NahuelMiapi, the loveliest fresh-water basin in Patagonia. 
Formerly supposed to be 50 miles long, it has been 
reduced by the observations of Moreno to about 40, 
with an extreme breadth of 9 or 10 miles. But 
nothing can diminish the impression produced by its 
pure crystalline waters, in which are reflected the 
surrounding heights — the bold headlands of its indented 
shores, above which rise bare, rugged crags, or beach 
and pine-clad granite peaks, with lofty, snow-white 
crests closing in the background. 

Nahuelhuapi is but one amongst many upland Pata- 
gonian lakes, which correspond with those of South Chili 
on the opposite side of the Great Andes. All alike are 
of tectonic and glacial origin, and may be described as 
flooded basins formed by the grinding action of the 
great glaciers, which, during the Ice Age, descended far 
lower than at present, and supplied most of the gravels 
now strewn over the Patagonian steppe. 

These lacustrine basins, some land-locked, some with 
outlets to the steppe rivers, some already silted up, are 
far more numerous than was formerly supposed. During 
his exploration of the Argentine Cordilleras in 1894-96, 
Dr. F. P. Moreno discovered eight new lakes north of, 
and no less than fifteen south of, JSTahuelhuapi, and also 
for the first time surveyed the mysterious Rio F'talenfu, 

VOL. I 2 a 



AKGEXTIXA 355 

which was found to be in some places over 25 feet deep. 
The beauty and fertility of the whole district are described 
in glowing language, and a great future is anticipated for 
these romantic and salubrious uplands, as soon as they 
are made accessible to settlers by a railway with the east 
coast.^ 

Although the current of the Limay is swift, it is 
unobstructed by any reefs or rapids, so that at high 
water steamers of powerful build might ascend from the 
Atlantic nearly all the way to Lake Xahuelhuapi, a total 
distance of nearly 600 miles. Thanks to the picturesque 
aspect of the surroundings, the ever-flowing stream, broad 
as the Thames at Westminster, seems to have a magnetic 
attraction for travellers analogous to that of the wavino- 
pampas plains themselves. 

Nor is the prospect everywhere so monotonous as 
might be supposed. At El Carmen, La Merced ( Viedma), 
and some other settlements along its lower reaches, human 
industry has transformed the uniform character of the 
landscape, and Mr. Hudson declares that, when he first 
sighted the Eio Negro, " never river seemed fairer to look 
upon, extending away on either hand until it melted and 
was lost in the blue horizon, its low shores clothed in all 
the glory of groves and fruit orchards, and vineyards and 
fields of ripening maize. Far out in the middle of the 
swift current floated flocks of black-necked swans, their 
white plumage shining like foam in the sunlight ; while 
just beneath us, scarcely a stone's throw off, stood the 
thatched farmhouse of our conductor, the smoke curling 
up peacefully from the kitchen chimney. A grove of 
large old cherry-trees, in which the house was em- 
bowered, added to the charm of the picture, and as 
w^e rode down to the gate we noticed the fully ripe 
^ Geogr. Jour., November 1896, ji. 578. 



356 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TPvAYEL 



cherries glowing like live coals amid the deep green 
foliage." -^ 

South of the Negro follow at long intervals a few 
other steppe streams — the Clmltit or Chulilao, the Desire, 
the Santa Cruz, and the Gallegos — all presenting much 




AXCIENT EASTEUX OUTLET OF LAKE SAN MARTIN. 

the same general features, in which is revealed their life 
history. Eising with several head branches on the slopes 
of the Cordillera, they receive all their supplies from the 
Andean snow-fields and the upland lakes of glacial origin, 
and, with one or two exceptions, are joined l)y no aftluents 

1 Idle Days, p. 1 7. 



ARGENTINA 



357 



during their parallel easterly course across the Patagoniau 
plains to the Atlantic. 

Of the lacustrine reservoirs, which send their overflow 
to these steppe rivers, the more important are lakes 
Musters, traversed by the Hio Senguerr, chief southern 
head-stream of the Chubut ; Coluhiiape, a feeder of the 




LAKE ARGENTINO. 



Desire (Eio Deseado), which was so named by its dis- 
coverer. Cavendish, in 1586 ; lastly, the three lakes Smi 
"Martin, Argentina, and Viedma, and perhaps others, all 
belonging now or formerly to the Santa Cruz basin. 

Viedma, so named by Moreno in 1877 from its 
discoverer, Antonio de Viedma, in 1782, is, next to 
Lake Buenos Ay res, the largest of all the Patagonia n 
lakes, being still 50 miles long with a mean breadth of 



358 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TPtAVEL 

10 to 12 miles. Traces of several raised beaches show 
that it was formerly a much larger basin, and at that 
time communicated through the Bio Leona direct with 
the Eio Santa Cruz. But at present this emissary flows 
south to the smaller Lake Argentino which drains to 
the Santa Cruz. 

Argentino, discovered in 1868 by Gardiner, also at 
one time stood at a much higher level than at present. 
Yet, like all these glacial tarns, it is still extremely deep, 
Moreno having taken soundings of 120 feet near the 
margin. Fed by so many lacustrine reservoirs, the 
Santa Cruz is the most copious of all the Patagonian 
rivers, with a volume estimated at 30,000 cubic feet per 
second. It enters the Atlantic below Port San Julian 
through a long fjord-like estuary, where it is joined by 
the Rio Chico from the north-west. 



The Magellanic Lakes 

Argentino is followed southwards by another basin 
standing apparently at the same level of about 300 feet 
above the sea. But although the exploration of this 
lacustrine region is still far from complete, Moreno has 
shown that there are at present no southern extensions 
of Lake Argentino. Nor is the region between South- 
West Patagonia and the Magellanic lands so difficult 
as it has been described by Otto Nordenskjold, who 
traversed it in 1895-96, probably in rainy weather. A 
tract only 10 miles wide, which he tells us his part;f 
took three days to traverse on horseback,-^ was covered 
by Moreno's party in a few hours in 1897 and 1898. 

In this transitional zone between the mainland and 
North - West Fuegia the Swedish explorer describes a 

1 Geog. Jonrn., October 1897, p. 404. 



ARGENTINA 



;!59 



group of upland lakes, which extend from near Peel Inlet 
to about the headwaters of tlie Rio Gallegos, and are 
completely separated from the Yiedma-Argentino Ijasins 
by the Balueles Mountains. They receive the drainage of 
this range and of the Latorre escarpments ^ through the 




THE COllDILLON OF THE ANDES AT LAST HOPE INLET. 

Mio Viscachas from the east, and have no connection 
with the Gallegos valley, but send their overflow through 
an unnamed emissary to the head of Last Hcype Inlet, 
northernmost of the Fuegian cliannels. 

' Tliese escarpments have been wrongly described by some observers 
as "mountains." The "Lahore range" has no existence, the line of 
cliffs so named being merely the south-western edge of the Patagonian 
plateau north of the Gallegos valley (Moreno). 



360 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

The first link in the chain is Lake Dickson, north of 
Mount Payne, and the last Lake Maravilla, about 70 
square miles in extent. Lake Sarmiento, the second 
largest member of the group (26 square miles), has no 
known outlet, but probably also drains to Maravilla. 
Everywhere in this region the indications of former 
glaciation on a vast scale are still in evidence, and Nor- 
denskjold's observations are in complete harmony with 
the conclusions of other explorers on the morainic origin 
of the Pataf^onian ^ravels. 



Climate 

Excluding the vertical zones, superimposed in rapid 
succession on the steep eastern slopes of the Cordilleras, 
Argentina, although stretching across thirty degrees of 
latitude, presents a certain uniformity in its main climatic 
conditions. This uniformity is determined, broadly 
speaking, by the two elements of heat and dryness pre- 
vailing in varying proportions over the whole region. 

But although the transitions are everywhere slight, 
being marked by increasing dryness and diminishing 
heat in the direction of the south, the results become 
accumulative when spread over such a vast area. Hence 
Patagonia, despite its perennial streams accounted for by 
local conditions, is at once more arid as well as colder 
than the central provinces, while these are in their turn 
distinctly drier, though not perhaps perceptiljly cooler, 
than the Gran Chaco territory in the far Xorth. But 
heat and dryness, where neither is excessive, are the 
normal constituents of a salubrious climate, from which 
it follows tliat the central provinces between the Cordoba 
heights and the Plate estuary are both relatively and 
absolutely the most favoured region in this respect. 



ARGENTINA 



161 



and in everj way the most suitable for European 
settlement. 

These inferences, which are of such vital importance 
for the future prospects of Argentina, may be regarded 
as fairly well established, and are fully borne out by the 
meteorological records from all parts of the country, as 
in the appended comparative table of temperatures and 
rainfall : — 



Towns, 


Latitude. 


Mean Temp. 


Max. 


Temp. 


Rainfall 


Ushwiya "\ 
(Fuegia) / 


. 54° 53' 


42° Fahr. 


81° 


Fahr. 


120 in. 


Bahia Blanca ) 
(Patagonia) J 
Buenos Ayres 


. 38° 45' 
. 34° 36' 


60° ,, 
64" ,, 


105° 
100° 


" 


19 „ 

34 ,, 


San Luiz 


. 33° 18' 


61° ,, 


103° 


,, 


24 ,: 


Rosario 


. 32'^ 56' 


63° „ 


101° 


,, 


40,, 


Mendoza 


. 32- 53' 


60° ,, 


100° 


,, 


6 ,, 


San Juan . 


. 31° 32' 


65° ,, 


108° 


,, 


3,, 


Cordoba 


. 31° 25' 


61° ,, 


111° 


,, 


26 ,, 


La Rioja 
Catamarca . 


. 29° 26' 

. 28° 28' 


67° ,, 
69° ,, 


109° 
109° 




12 ,, 
10 ,, 


Santiago del Estero 


. 27° 48' 


70° ,, 


113° 


,, 


19 ,, 


Tucuman . 


. 26° 50' 


68° ,, 


104° 


,, 


31) „ 


Salta . 


. 24° 46' 


63° ,, 


109° 


,, 


23 „ 



Here the general uniformity, as well as the gradual 
transitions, are well shown in the column of mean 
temperatures, confined, except in Fuegia, to the narrow 
range of 60° to 70° Fahr.; and in the rainfall nowhere 
exceeding 40 inches, though owing to local causes ex- 
ceptionally falling very low in the Mendoza and San 
Juan districts. On the other hand, the column of 
maximum temperature indicates almost everywhere a 
high degree of summer heat, and this is unquestionably 
the most unfavourable feature of the Argentine climate. 
But the picture is not nearly so dark as it looks, being 
relieved both by the generally short duration of the 
intense heats and by the dryness of the atmosphere. 



362 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

wliich renders them far less oppressive than they other- 
wise would be. Kesidents in tropical lands often feel 
the heat of the torrid zone less irksome than the relatively 
cooler but more humid summer of the British Isles. 

But Argentina is not an earthly Paradise, and serious 
disturbing elements are the occasional long droughts and 
the equatorial and antarctic gales, for which there is 
ample scope in a region unobstructed for over 2000 miles 
by any barriers higher than the Ventana and Cordoba 
ranges. The much-dreaded northern zonda blows with 
great fury during the winter months from July to 
September, sometimes causing the glass to rise and fall 
as much us 50° Fahr. in a few hours. Farther south 
the seaboard is exposed to the equally tempestuous south- 
east trades, the so-called suestadas, which prevail for a 
great part of the year in the Plate region, strewing the 
estuary with wreckage and stemming the currents of the 
Eios Parana and Uruguay until they overflow their 
banks far inland. These trades are to be distinguished 
from the scarcely less boisterous pcmperos, or pamj)as 
winds, which set in the direction from south-west to 
north-east, and are at times felt on the Brazilian coast- 
lands. 

These pamperos burst at times with great violence over 
the plains, at first hot as a furnace blast while driving 
back the fiery equatorial north winds, then suddenly 
growing cool and moist like the south-westers in the 
English Channel. They appear to set up those peculiar 
electric conditions in the atmosphere, to which has been 
attributed the so-called aire or "air-stroke," a strange 
kind of paralysis which constantly accompanies them, and 
attacks both natives and foreigners alike : perhaps twist- 
ing up a corner of the mouth, or half-closing one eye, or 
causing a sudden swelling of the neck. These unpleasant 



APtGENTINA 363 

symptoms, for which sulphur externally applied is said 
to be a specific, but which may even prove fatal, seem to 
be really caused by an electric discharge, " for there are 
authentic cases of two men sitting together being simul- 
taneously seized by this strange and invisible enemy, the 
one being killed on the spot as by lightning, and the 
other paralysed in some limb." ^ 

At times the droughts last for years, with results 
disastrous enough to affect the economic conditions of 
the land. Thus in the province of Buenos Ayres scarcely 
any rain fell for the five years ending in 1831, and 
during this gran seca, " great drought," nearly all the 
live-stock was swept away, and the herbaceous vegetation 
burnt out of the ground. Some of the western provinces, 
especially San Juan and Mendoza, might almost be in- 
cluded in the rainless zone. But here the torrents 
which feed the irrigation rills draw their supplies from 
the melting snows of the Cordillera, while the inexhaust- 
ible underground reservoirs have been tapped by Artesian 
wells to depths of 300 or 400 feet. Xevertheless the 
indications of increasing dryness cannot be ignored, and 
men of science are already engaged on the problem, how- 
to prevent a great part of Argentina from gradually 
sinking to the hopelessly arid condition of the Patagonian 
tableland. 

Flora 

In Argentina are distinguished three vegetable zones, 
which may be roughly described as arboreal, herliaceous, 
and scrubby. The arboreal finds its greatest development 
in the Gran Chaco woodlands, but is by no means con- 
fined to that region. Wooded tracts also occur in the 
provinces of Corrientes and Entre-Piios between the 

^ Cruise of the Falcon, vol. ii. p. 81. 



364 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

Parana and Uruguay rivers, while narrow bands of forest 
growths, continuing the Peruvian and Bolivian inontana 
southwards, extend along the lower slopes of the Cordillera 
in the provinces of Salta, Jujuy, and Tucuman, and at 
intervals all the way to the lacustrine region of South- 
West Patagonia. 

Here flourish both the Antarctic beech and the 
Chilian peliuen (Araucaria imbricata), and the European 
apple-tree, which was introduced by the Jesuits, and has 
found a congenial home on the eastern slopes of the 
Cordillera. The vegetation is here also diversified by 
a tolerably rich growth of aromatic plants, such as the 
'•' incense tree," yielding a valuable resin, the maki, also 
resinous, the " Santa Cruz tea," from which is made an 
infusion with a strong flavour of mint, and the herberis 
bunifolia, which ranges down to the sand-hills and 
supplies the natives with immense quantities of edible 
berries. 

Perhaps the most conspicuous plant in Gran Chaeo 
is the wax-palm {Cuperiiicia cerifcra), one of the ten or 
twelve members of the palm family which are found in 
Argentina. But more wide-spread is the algcvrroba 
{Prosopis), a kind of mimosa like the carob, which has an 
immense range, and is of considerable economic value to 
the natives. There are two varieties, — " the white, which 
bears shelled fruit resembling our white bean in colour 
and size, affording an excellent beverage, and could yield 
flour also ; and the black -bearing shelled fruit like our 
bread bean, and yielding an inferior drink, but a most 
excellent and abundant flour, with which they make 
a bread called imtai by a peculiar and, according 
to our notions, repulsive process." ^ The bread, some- 
what like pounded chestnut, is very nutritious, and 
^ G. Pelleschi, Eight Months on the Gran Chaco, p. 70. 



ARGENTINA 365 

this valuable tree also supplies an excellent building 
material. 

Other useful plants are the vinal, from which is 
made a kind of chich a, or fermented drink ; the pacard, 
a tree of great size and beauty belonging to the mimosa 
family, the fruit of which contains a large percent- 
age of saponine ; the urimclay, la'pacho, quebracho, and 
palo-sanio, all close-grained and useful either for building 
or fine cabinet-work. 

The pampas flora, mainly herbaceous, is characterised 
by great uniformity, resulting from the wide range of a 
very limited number of species. Amongst these the 
most characteristic is the so-called " pampas grass " 
{gynerium argenteum), which is, however, mostly confined 
to the humid depressions about the Patagonian frontier, 
and to the uplands, where moisture is derived from the 
melting snows. It does not thrive on the dry soil of 
the pampas proper, which are mainly covered with two 
kinds of herbage, the 2^'^^sio tierno and i^f^sto duro, that 
is, soft and coarse grasses, suitable the one for sheep, the 
other for horses, both for cattle. Here extensive tracts 
have been invaded by several varieties of the European 
thistle, which need little moisture, and in some places 
have already formed impenetrable thickets. " In most 
places the rich, dry soil is occupied by a coarse grass, 
three or four feet high, growing in large tussocks, and 
all the year round of a deep green. A few slender herbs 
and trefoils, with long twining stems, maintain a frail 
existence among the tussocks ; but the strong grass 
crowds out most plants, and scarcely a flower relieves its 
uniform everlasting verdure. There are patches, some- 
times large areas, where it does not grow, and these are 
carpeted by small creeping herbs of a livelier green, and 
are gay in spring with flowers, chiefly of the composite 



366 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

aud papilionaceous kinds ; and verbenas, scarlet, purple, 
rose and white. On moist or marshy grounds there are 
also several lilies, yellow, white and red, two or three 
flags, and various other small flowers. But altogether 
the flora of the pampas is the poorest in species of any 
fertile district on the globe." ^ 

In the third or scrubby zone, comprising the Pata- 
gonian lowlands, the scanty vegetation is nowhere 
continuous, except here and there along the river-banks. 
It consists chiefly of tufty grass and herbs growing- 
round about the stems of thorny bushes. A prevailing- 
form in the Negro valley is the chanar, " a tree in form, 
but scarcely more than a bush in size. In late October 
it bears a profusion of flowers in clusters, in shape, size, 
and brilliant yellow colour resembling the flower of the 
broom." - 

Here also grows the willow, probably introduced from 
Europe, but now " a large tree of a century's majestic 
growth, forming a suitable perch and lookout for the 
harpy and gray eagles common in the valley, and the 
still more common vultures and polybori, and of the 
high-roosting, noble black-faced ibis ; a home and house, 
too, of the Magellanic eagle-owl and the spotted wild 
cat ; and where even the puma could lie at ease on a 
horizontal branch thirty or forty feet above the earth " 
(ib.). Another growth of this arid region is the herba- 
ceous evening primrose {Enothera hiennis), now- a familiar 
object in English gardens. In Argentina it has a wide 
range, occurring not only in the Xegro valley but also in 
the Buenos Ayres district and as far north as the Eio 
Salado, everywhere adapting itself to the different con- 
ditions of soil and climate. In some places only a few 

^ \\' . H. Hudson, The Naturalist in La Plata, p. 56. 
- Idle Days in Patagonia, p, 50. 



AEGENTINA 367 

inches high, with flowers no bigger than butter-cups, in 
others it grows tall and rank, five or six feet high, with 
large flowers emitting only a faint perfume, while else- 
where it is a tall, slender plant, " grass-like among the 
tall grasses, with wide open flowers about an inch in 
diameter, and not more than two or three on each plant " 
(ib. p. 239). 

On the salt plains in the Upper Colorado basin little 
is seen except thorny shrubs, whose very leaves have a 
saline flavour, and huge cacti, which grow here to a 
larger size than elsewhere. At a distance they look 
like enormous candelabra, the outstretched arms branch- 
ing off at right angles from the stem and then throwing 
off minor branchlets also at right angles, the whole 
armed with sharp thorns 6 or 7 inches long. 



Scenery of Gran Chaco 

What may be called the sociable character of the 
Argentine flora, that is, the tendency of certain species 
to herd together in large masses to the exclusion of all 
rivals, is conspicuous especially in the Gran Chaco, where 
whole districts take their name from the dominant forms. 
Thus we have in one place the so-called palmares, where 
little is seen except boundless forests of palms; in 
another the algarrobales ; elsewhere the chanarales, or the 
vinalares of the tracts exposed to periodical floods. 
Whole forests are also met with of the gnayac tree {Palo 
santo), and in many parts the vegetation is wonderfully 
rich and luxuriant. So exuberant are the tropical 
growths that it becomes difficult to understand how so 
limited an area can produce and sustain such dense 
masses of plants and trees. And, in truth, the ground 
itself is insufficient for all its offspring. The stems of 



368 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the trees have to support the most varied kinds of 
climbers and creepers, which coil round them with a 
marvellously-shaded mantle of green profusely decked 
with flowers of every hue. The traveller wanders for 
days together beneath the shade of these natural bowers, 
through which glimpses are rarely caught of the over- 
hanging azure sky. 

And if the day with all its glories is so indescribably 
attractive to the lover of nature, the marvellous nights 
of these regions still reserve fresh and unexpected charm& 
for him. There is nothing comparable to the impression 
of serene repose inspired by the sight of the starry 
heavens, especially in the more open savannahs. Our 
thoughts revert unwittingly to those lovely nights on 
the silent deep, when the vessel is borne along as by an 
unseen power, on the unruffled surface of the waters 
beneath the A'ault of a tropical sky. The charm is 
heightened by the countless swarms of fire-flies, whose 
phosphorescent lamps flash out and again suddenly 
disappear in the gloom. But these are visions to 
be seen in order to be felt ; such nights must have 
been actually experienced, for it is as impossible to 
describe as it is to forget the varied effects they 
produce on the mind of the lonely wayfarer. 



Fauna 

Eeference has already been made to the extinct faunas 
of the pampean and Patagonian Tertiary formations, 
showing that animal life was formerly far more abundant 
in those regions than is now the case. At present the 
Eio Negro forms to some extent a zoological as well as a 
botanical parting-line, as indicated by the two species of 
the rhea (" American ostrich ") and of the jaguar, the 



ARGENTINA 369 

smaller in both cases being confined to Patagonia, the 
larger ranging the northern regions. 

Peculiar to the extreme south are also two varieties 
of the wild cat, a dwarfish armadillo (Dasypus minutus) 
and some species of the mouse family, which are here 
more numerous than elsewhere. But the divide is 
crossed by the ubiquitous puma and guanaco, which 
range to the extremity of the continent, and, of course, 
by many birds, which, however, acquire new habits in 
the southern steppe lands, where the conditions of life 
are more difficult. Thus tlie condor, whose flight is 
mostly restricted to the uplands in Peru and Ecuador, 
descends in Patagonia down to sea-level. Water-fowl, 
both waders and swimmers, are represented in great 
variety and in vast numbers, and include some distinct 
species, such as the " steamer duck," the black-necked 
swan and the flamingo, which is of smaller size but 
richer colour than its African congener. Scenes of 
extraordinary animation are often presented by the pam- 
pean lagoons, where at the crack of a rifle countless flocks 
of all kinds rise suddenly on the wing, " strings of wild 
duck of half a dozen species ; clouds of sandpipers and 
teal ; bronze ibises — beautiful birds with glossy dark 
green and coppery plumage — shooting past like arrow- 
heads, which they exactly resemble in their flight ; 
herons and cranes innumerable ; serried columns of gor- 
geous flamingos, their scarlet wings all glowing in the 
sun ; the rare and lovely roseate spoonl )ill." ^ 

Of the numerous species of rails the finest is the 
ypccaha, which is one of those birds given to holding 
public gatherings and dancing performances. " A number 
of ypecahas have their assembling places on a small area 
of smooth level ground just above the water, and hemmed 

1 Rumbold, p. 280. 
VOL. I 2 B 



370 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

in by dense rush beds. First, one bird among the rushes 
emits a powerful cry, thrice repeated, and this is a note 
of invitation quickly responded to by other birds from 
all sides as they hurriedly repair to the usual place. In 
a few moments they appear to the numljer of a dozen or 
twenty, bursting from the rushes, and running into the 
open space, and instantly beginning the performance. 
This is a tremendous screaming concert. The screams 
they utter have a certain resemblance to the human 
voice, exerted to its utmost pitch, and expressive of 
extreme terror, frenzy and despair. A long piercing 
shriek is succeeded by a lower note, as if in the first the 
creature had well-nigh exhausted itself. While scream- 
ing the birds rush from side to side, as if possessed by 
madness, the wings spread and vibrating, the long beak 
wide open and raised vertically. This exhibition lasts 
tliree or four minutes, after which the assembly peacefully 
breaks up." ^ 

Of the pampean mammals the most characteristic is 
the mzcacha, which corresponds to the North American 
prairie dog, and like it lives in friendly association with 
the burrowing owl and other night birds in their common 
underground dwellings. " This large rodent inhabits a 
vast extent of country, north, west, and south of the true 
pampas, but nowhere is he so thoroughly on his native 
heath as on the great grassy plain. He lives in a small 
community of twenty or thirty members, in a village of 
deep-chambered burrows, and as the village endures for 
ever, or for an indefinite time, the earth constantly being 
brought up forms a mound 30 or 40 feet in diameter, 
and this protects the habitation from floods on low or 
level ground. Again, he is not swift of foot, and all 
rapacious beasts are his enemies ; he also loves to feed on 

1 The Naturalist in La Plata, ]i. 267. 



ARGENTINA 371 

tender succulent herbs and grasses, to seek for which he 
would have to go far afield among the giant grass, where 
his watchfid foes are lying in wait to seize him. He 
saves himself from this danger by making a clearing all 
round his al)ode, on which a smooth turf is formed ; and 
here the animals feed and have their evening pastimes in 
comparative security ; for when an enemy approaches he 
is easily seen ; the note of alarm is sounded, and the 
whole company scuttle away to their refuge. In dis- 
tricts having a different soil and vegetation, as in 
Patagonia, the vizcachas' curious, unique instincts are of 
no special advantage, which makes it seem probable that 
they have been formed on the pampas." ^ 

On the whole the reptile world is poorly represented, 
and seems to show a tendency towards degradation in 
the direction of the south. Thus the JacarS alligator, 
although numerous in the Corrientes waters, scarcely 
anywhere exceeds six or seven feet in length. The boa 
and the rattle-snake range, the former no farther south 
than Santiago del Estero, the latter than the Cordoba 
heights. On the other hand, insect pests, such as mos- 
quitoes, the horrible ixodes, a tick of the jigger type, 
and the tiny but bloodthirsty bicho Colorado ("red beast"), 
abound to such an extent as to render some districts 
almost uninhabitable. " The ticks, inhabiting regions 
rich in bird and insect life, but with few mannnals, are 
in the same condition as mosquitoes, as far as the supply 
of l)lood goes ; and, like the mosquitoes, they are able to 
exist without the nourishment best suited to them. 
They are nature's miserable castaways, parasitical tribes 
lost in a great dry wilderness where no blood is ; and 
every marsh-born mosquito, piping of the hunger gnaw- 
ing its vitals, and every forest tick, blindly feeling with 
1 The Naturalist in La Plata, [>. 10. 



372 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TltAVEL 

its grappling-irons for the beast that never brushes by, 
seems to tell us of a world peopled with gigantic forms, 
mammalian and reptilian, which once afforded abundant 
pasture to the parasite, and which the parasite perhaps 
assisted to overthrow." ^ 

These noxious pests are in their turn preyed upon by 
the dragon-flies which, like the locusts of the Old World, 
occasionally visit the pampas and the Patagonian steppe 
in countless myriads. There are several varieties, some 
three or four inches long, but all associate together 
in these tremendous " dragon-fly storms," which come, 
not with the cold south-westerii gales, but in advance of 
them, hence called Mjos del 2Jci777pero (" children of the 
pampas wind"). At times they arrive almost simultane- 
ously with the storm, going by like a flash, and instantly 
vanishing from sight. " You have scarcely time to see 
them before the wind strikes you. As a rule, however, 
they make their appearance from five to fifteen minutes 
before the wind strikes ; and when they are in great 
numbers, the air to a height of ten or twelve feet above 
the surface of the ground is all at once seen to be full 
of them, rushing past with extraordinary velocity in a 
north-easterly direction. When they pass over the level, 
treeless country, not one insect lags behind or permits 
the wind to overtake it. But on arriving at a wood or 
large plantation they swarm into it, as if seeking shelter 
from some swift pursuing enemy, and on such occasions 
they sometimes remain clinging to the trees while the 
wind spends its force" (ih. p. 131). But instead of 
consuming the vegetation, these carnivorous creatures 
fall upon the bush-ticks, gnats, sand-flies and similar 
pests, causing them to vanish like smoke. 

Most European domestic animals have been success- 

1 The Naturalist in La Plata, p. 142. 



V 3- 



To face jjage S11. 




soiTii cmi h 







1 


N 


, , . "TZ'.'^y^^ 






* v^-^ 





* e^ j_ ^ ^vM I 



AUGENTJNA 373 

fully introduced. Some, such as the horse, have even 
run wild on some of the uplands, while others, such as 
the sheep and horned cattle, have undergone slight 
modifications of form in the process of adaptation to 
their new surroundings. Such changes, advantageous to 
the animal in the struggle for existence, have not always 
proved profitable to its owner. Thus the criolla, or old 
pampa breed of sheep, had developed in the course of 
three centuries into a distinct variety characterised by 
tall, gaunt liony frame, great agility and endurance, but 
with lean, dry flesh, like venison, and long, straight wool, 
like goat's hair, hence of little use as a wool and food- 
producing animal. This breed has accordingly every- 
where, except in the poor localities, been either improved 
by crossing or else replaced by fresh stock from Spain 
and England. All these animals have multiplied pro- 
digiously, and constitute at present the chief source of 
wealth in a country which suffers from a deficiency of 
moisture, and is consequently better suited for stock- 
breeding than for tillaffe. 



CHAPTEE XI 

ARGENTINA — {continued) 

Inhabitants — Prehistoric Peoples — The Pampas Indians and Guarani of 
the Missions — The Calchaquis and Gran Chaco Indians — The Tobas 
and Matacos — The Gauchos — The Patagonians — The Argentinos and 
Italians — Topography — Historic Retrospect — Material Progress — 
Railway Enterprise — Agriculture and Stock-breeding — Government 
— Political Situation — Religion — Education — Defences. 



Inhabitants — Prehistoric Peoples 

It was shown iu Chapter II. that at the time of the 
discovery the South American cultural area was mainly 
confined to the western uplands from the Cundinamarca 
plateau to the southern limits of the Peruvian empire. 
But there are indications that at a still more remote 
epoch the civilisation represented hy the Incas had been 
preceded by a different culture widely difiused over the 
eastern slopes of the Argentine Cordillera, and even on 
the now arid lowlands l^etween the present provinces of 
Jujuy and Mendoza. The so-called " Incas' Eoad," whicli 
may still be followed for hundreds of miles over the 
plains with branches ramifying in various directions, is 
believed by some archieologists to date from pre-Inea 
times. 

Here also liave been discovered certain rock inscrip- 



ARGENTINA 



37; 



tions or carvings, the remains of extensive irrigation 
works, stone and metal objects, and some other evidences 
of an ancient civilisation, of which no memories have 
survived, and which would seem to have gradually 
disappeared with the growing deterioration of the climate 
in the Upper Colorado basin. What became of the 
peoples associated with these remains ? Did they with- 




TIIE INCAS BRIDGE OX THE M liNDUZA-SANTI AGO KOAD. 



draw to the Andean plateaux, and found new seats on 
the shores of Lake Titicaca, where afterwards rose the 
megalithic monuments of Tiahuanaco ? 

There is abundant evidence to show that in remote 
times, under more favourable climatic conditions, both 
the pampas plains and the Patagonian steppe were far 
more thickly peopled than at present, though not by 
races that can be described as cultured, in the ordinarv 



376 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

sense of the term. They appear to have nowhere 
advanced beyond the New Stone Age, as shown by the 
rude pottery dug up in the numerous ^9ar«(?e9'OS or 
stations of early man strewn over the pampas between 
the Pdo Carcaraila and the Plate estuary. The rude 
stone implements occurring in abundance in the glacial 
drift of the Eio Negro and elsewhere, together with the 
human remains found in association with the extinct 
pampas fauna, and also in the shell mounds of the coast 
and the interior about the head of the old Plate estuary, 
when it penetrated 200 or 300 miles farther inland than 
at present, show further that these regions had been 
occupied in still more remote times corresponding with 
the Old Stone Age of the northern hemisphere. 

Abundant proofs of former human settlements on 
the now lifeless Patagonian wastes have been collected 
by Mr. Hudson on the exposed sites of numberlet-s 
villages of the former inhabitants of the Negro valley. 
" I have visited a dozen such village sites in the course 
of one hour's walk, so numerous are they. Where the 
village had been a populous one, or inhabited for a long 
period, the ground was a perfect bed of chipped stones, 
and amono; these fragments were found arrow-heads, flint 
knives and scrapers, mortars and pestles, anvils, perforated 
shells, fragments of pottery. The site where I picked 
up the largest number had been buried to a depth of 
seven or eight feet ; only where the water had washed 
great masses of sand and gravel away the arrow-heads, 
with other weapons and implements, had been exposed." ^ 

The Pampas Indians and Guarani of the Missions 
Probably nine-tenths of the different tribal groups in 

^ Idle Days in Patagonia, p. 39. 



ARGENTINA 377 

possession of the land at the advent of the whites have 
since disappeared, either absorbed in the general Hispano- 
American population, or exterminated during the early- 
border warfare, or by the systematic policy of the 
Argentine administration in recent years. Thus the 
Querandi, Ranqueles, and others of the Plate district, 
collectively called Panvpas Indians, who for a time 
successfully resisted the first efforts of the Spaniards to 
gain a footing on the south side of the estuary, and 
afterwards continued their predatory expeditions for over 
two centuries right up to the walls of Buenos Ayres, 
were at last seriously taken in hand in 1879, and 
practically cleared out by General Eoca's well -devised 
" plan of campaign." In a few years vast tracts previously 
exposed to their incursions were thrown open to settlers, 
and a greater change effected in the ethnical relations 
than had been brought about since the first occupation 
of the land. 

In the region between the Parana and the Uruguay, 
the natives, mostly of Guarani stock and less warlike 
temperament, had at an early period been gathered by 
the Jesuits about the stations, and although the 
" missions " were afterwards broken up, the majority of 
these mansos (" tame ") Indians were gradually absorbed 
in the general white population. A like destiny was 
experienced by the bulk of the Calckaqiii, the dominant 
people of the north-western provinces, who had already 
before the conquest been brought into contact with the 
Incas, spoke the Quichuan language, and were possibly 
of Quichua descent. Farther south the pampas were 
roamed by the Gcnuakens, who were of a different type 
from the Patagonians, and spoke a different language. 
l)ut they are now nearly extinct, not more than about 
fifty men surviving in 1S99. 



378 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

In the extreme south also most of the Patagonian 
Tehuelches have lately been induced to give up their 
nomad existence and form peaceful settled communities 
in the more favoured districts of the plateau. But in 
Gran Chaco the fierce Tolas, the Lules, Vildas, Mocovis, 
Abipons, Matacos are still in the wild state, and have 
hitherto shown little inclination to adopt civilised ways. 
Thus it appears that, except in this still scarcely explored 
wilderness, the aboriginal element has everywhere been 
well-nigh eliminated, and the whole land from Corrientes 
to Fuegia secured in perpetuity for the peoples of Caucasic 
stock. 

The Calchaquis and Gran Chaco Indians 

Of the former inhabitants of Argentina the Calchaquis 
were both the most numerous and the farthest removed 
from the savage state. They were formerly widely 
diffused over the plains between the Cordoba heights and 
the Cordilleras, and were long dominant in the present 
province of Tucuman, but gradually disappeared as a 
distinct nationality after their final overthrow by the 
Spaniards in 1664. At that time the Quilmes branch 
were removed to the settlement of Buenos Ayres, where 
some of their descendants survived till the middle of the 
nineteenth century, and where the name is perpetuated 
in one of the suburbs of that city. The names of other 
branches are similarly kept alive by such geographical 
terms as Famatina, Fiamhala, Andalala, Tinogasta, and 
many others scattered over the former Calchaqui domain. 
Moreover, while the race has been subdued and absorbed, 
their old Quichua language still flourishes, and in the 
Punilla and other districts is currently spoken by all classes, 
by the lower orders exclusively, by the upper jointly with 
Spanish. This is another illustration of the well-known 



ARGENTINA 6l\) 

fact that certain forms of speech — English, Arabic, Malay, 
Quichua — are endowed with intense vitality, and persist 
for ages under the most adverse circumstances. 

In Gran Chaco the Guarani race is chiefly represented 
by the semi -independent Chiriguanos, who also range 
across the frontier into South -East Bolivia. Although 
said to have been conquered by the Inca Yupangui at a 
time when they were still utter savages and cannibals 
of a pronounced type, they afterwards held out long 
against the Spaniards, and even defeated the expedition 
of 1571 led against them by the Viceroy Toledo in 
person. At present the Chiriguanos are mostly of 
Spanish speech, and seek employment on the sugar 
plantations about the Bermejo and Juramento rivers. 

According to the protracted researches of Senor 
Lafone-Quevedo,-^ most of the still independent Gran 
Chaco w41d tribes belong to the Guaicvru or Mhaya 
family, the chief members of which are the fierce and 
powerful Tohas of the Pilcomayo valley, the Mocohi, the 
Lules and the nearly extinct Abipons of the Bermejo, 
and the Matacos {Mataguayos) along the west side of the 
Paraguay and Parana between the Pilcomayo and Salado 
confluences. 

The Tobas and Matacos 

Although far from numerous, probably less than 
20,000 altogether, the Tobas are amongst the most 
powerful and aggressive of all the South American wild 
tribes. None of them have ever l)een reduced, and they 
have hitherto repelled all friendly and forcible attempts 
of the whites to gain a permanent footing in their 
territory. They are typical American aborigines, tall 

1 Numerous Pajiers in the Boletin del Instituto Gcocjrafico, Buenos 
Ayres, 1890-98, and elsewhere. 



380 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

(5 feet 8 inches to 6 feet), slim, bony, with very long, 
lank black hair, of ratlier light brown colour, extremely 
wary and, like the prairie Indians, men of few words. A 
scene witnessed by Mr. Knight on the banks of the 
Paraguay shows that there is no exaggeration in Cooper's 
pictures illustrating the taciturn disposition of his 
Iroquois heroes : " We saw four Indians come stealthily 
down to the bank armed with long lances. Then, lying 
down among the reeds, they gazed silently into the water 
till they saw some big fish pass by, when, with wonderful 
skill, they speared them one after the other, and threw 
them on the bank. Next they lit a fire, roasted the fish 
they had caught, and devoured them. This done, they 
picked up their weapons and crept back into the woods 
as noiselessly and stealthily as they had come. The 
whole time — some three hours — not one of these men 
spoke a word ; they gave the necessary directions to each 
other by slight inclinations of the head only." ^ 

Even from a distance the Tobas are known from their 
peculiar walk, which resembles that of a highly-trained 
stepper. The habit, however, is not racial, but due to 
the necessity of raising the foot at each step to the level 
of the knee when traversing the marshy Pilcomayo 
districts, and the motion thus acquired is retained on 
dry ground. It may be compared with the custom of 
the Dinkas and some other low races of resting on one 
leg, with the other planted against it at a sharp angle. 
Even in repose they have to be ever on the alert against 
human and other predatory animals. The Tobas are 
true nomads, moving about without any settled abodes, 
living entirely on hunting and fishing, and, like the 
Patagonians, given to drunken orgies often kept up for 
days together. Maintaining a state of perpetual warfare 

1 Cruise of the Falcon, vol. ii. p. 102. 



ARGENTINA 381 

with all their neighbours, they go always armed, chiefly 
with the spear and club, and after the fight bring the 
mangled remains of the enemy home to the family, re- 
serving the head for themselves. They are thus inured 
to scenes of carnage from their childhood, and it is con- 
sidered a mercy to despatch the infirm and aged, and 
thus relieve them from a lingering natural death, which 
all despise. 

Although rated by Pelleschi as the lowest of all the 
Chaco Indians in the social scale, the Matacos are far 
less ferocious, and lead more settled lives, than the Tobas. 
They are generally well disposed towards the whites, and 
take part with them in their wars against the hostile 
tribes. But they cannot count hejond four, and a famous 
Mataco chief, interviewed by Pelleschi, found it a hard 
task to reckon up the large number of the enemy that he 
had slain in his time. After reaching the fourth he got 
puzzled, and, " sitting down cross-legged on the ground, 
began making marks on the earth with his finger, ex- 
claiming at each one toch, i.e. ' this,' raising his head 
each time as well as his hand, and looking at me, added 
uuidt toch, ' and this one too ' : and so he went on until 
he reached about a score, always, however, turning towards 
me that I might understand that, besides these, there 
were always the four fingers, until at last I was tired out 
with ntocq, 7itocq, ' many, many.' " ^ 

The Grauchos 

Although the FehueleJics, or Fainpas Indians, have 
disappeared as a separate ethnical grou]), they have, in 
a sense, been replaced by the Gauchos'^ who are usually 

1 Op. cit. p. 289. 

- Properly Gachn, an Araucanian word meaning "Friend," or "Com- 
panion," and used as a term of address, like the American " Stranger," 



382 



CO.MJ'ENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 



described as half-breeds — whites on the father's, Indians 
on the mother's side. But Senor Moreno is inclined to 
regard the true Gauchos, i.e. the " Chinos," now nearly 
extinct, as almost full -blood aborigines, while the 
Gauchos properly so-called are rather direct descendants 
of the conquerors, especially the Moriscos, with a large 




strain of .Vrab blood, further modified by gradual 
adaptation to their new environment. The typical 
Gaucho is essentially a child of the steppe, round, 
whom a certain halo of romance has been thrown 
by his wild venturesome life, his apparent chivalry, 
love of finery, splendid horsemanship, and tliat air of 
courtesy which belongs to all of Spanish blood. But 



AEGENTINA 383 

those who know them best do not regret the gradual dis- 
appearance of these " panipean centaurs," who, after 
playing perhaps a useful part during a transitional period 
between rude and civilised social conditions, are now re- 
ceding before the steady advance of the " Gringos," ^ or 
white immigrants from almost every country in Europe. 
There are of course Gauchos and Gauchos, and some have 
undoubtedly earned an evil repute for brigandage, and 
even piracy, where they have given up the horse for the 
canoe about the Lower Parana reaches. Those met by 
^Ir. Knight in the upper provinces are described as " a 
cut-throat looking lot of ruffians ; ragged, weather-beaten 
outlaws, cast, with his long life at his back, many with 
holas and lassos, ready to Ijring down any stray cattle 
that might come by on their lonely w^anderings " (op. 
eit. vol. i. p. 250). But, on the other hand, instances of 
nobler qualities are on record, and many have shown 
great courage and loyalty in the service of those whites 
whom they had learned to trust and respect. 

But they must soon get crowded out, for they find it 
difficult to exchange their restless habits for the sedentary 
life of the settlers and of the townsfolk, all of whom they 
despise. It is curious to meet a Gaucho from the pampas 
strolling through the busy streets of Cordoba or Eosario, 
where he feels so out of place in his . striped poncho, his 
laced pantaloons, and leather belt ornamented with bright 
coins. He takes no interest in anything, but looks with 
contempt on all the surroundings. " Life in the saddle, 
on the pampas or in the monte (bush), is the only life 
he knows or cares for. Horse-stealinw and cattle-lifting, 
in his opinion, are the only pursuits worthy of a man" 

^ That is Gricrjos, or "Greeks," so called because supposed to speak 
•'Greek," i.e. any language other than Spanish. Cf. the English expres- 
sion, " that is Greek to me." 



384 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 

{ih. p. 137). The last geuuine Gauchos, who retained 
the traditions of the race and were recognised as a 
distinct element in the Argentine social and political 
system, are said to have been the so-called Llanistas of 
the La Eioja district, who, however, should be distin- 
guished from the Pampean Gauchos, having a larger 
admixture of Indian (Huarpe and Calchaqui) blood. 
At first the Llanistas were retainers of two powerful 
local families, then during the civil wars joined the 
ferocious Facundo Quiroga, with their dreaded banner : 
" Eeligion or Death." 

Some of the stories told of the amazing powers of 
observation and sagacity of these free lances may not be 
true, but they serve to indicate the reputation they have 
earned for such qualities. If they lose their way by 
night, they pluck some grass and taste it, go a mile or 
two on and taste some more, and thus find the direction 
of the__ river, lake or wood they wish to reach. By the 
flight of birds, by a cloud of dust, they can tell the 
number of the approaching tropillas (caravans), and Mr. 
Knight knew of one who never forgot the footprint of 
man or horse to which his attention had once been 
directed. On one occasion while travelling he stopped 
suddenly, and pointing to a print, said, " The little gray 
horse stolen from my master, Don Luis, three years ago, 
passed here an hour ago." So it turned out, and the 
horse was recovered {op. cit. vol. i. p. 220). 



The Patagonians 

Beyond the Eio Negro the Chilian Araucanians liave 
crossed the Cordillera at several points. But there was 
little inducement for them to range far down the fertile 
and well -watered slopes of the mountains everywhere 



ARGENTINA 



381 



merging in the arid wastes of Patagonia. Hence the 
whole of this region from the Negro to Fuegia has 
remained i'rom remote times 
in the unchallenged posses- 
sion of the gigantic race, 
whom the companions of 
Magellan hy mistake called 
" Patagones," or " Big Feet," 
these extremities being in 
fact rather small compared 
to their large figures. The 
error arose probably from 
their custom of wearing in 
cold weather loose guanaco- 
skin wraps over their boots, 
thus giving an ungainly ap- 
pearance to the feet. No 
native collective name is 
known, if any exists, for 
all the tribal groups ; hence 
antliropologists have now 
adopted the term Tehuelche, 
applied by the Araucanians 
in a general way to the whole 
race. After the first accounts 
published by Pigafetta, his- 
torian of the Magellanic 
expedition, other observers, 
improving on those accounts, 
reported the existence in the 
same region of a veritable race 
of Anaks ranging in height 
from 10 to 12 feet. But such reports are generally 
regarded as fabulous, and there is no reason to suppose 
VOL. I - ^ 




IKHUELCHE. 



386 COMPENDIUM OF GE0C4RAPHY AND TRAVEL 

that the present Patagonians differ apprecial)]y in their 
physical characters from those first sighted by Magellan. 
They were nevertheless universally regarded as the tallest 
people in the world, with a mean height of from 6 feet 
to 6 feet 4 inches, until the members of the recent 
Ehrenreich expedition showed by accurate measurements 
that the Bororos of Central Brazil were of about the same 
colossal stature.^ There are even other reasons for 
thinking that the Tehuelches may be descended from 
some Bororo immigrants into Patagonia in prehistoric 
times ; but the question is of too speculative a nature 
for discussion in these pages. 

A memorable account has been left us by Lieutenant 
Musters of the wandering life of these steppe nomads, 
w^itnessed and even shared in by him on one eventful 
occasion, when he accompanied their wandering expedi- 
tions from one end of Patagonia to the other. Having 
completed his arrangements with the Tehuelche chief 
Orkeke, he started in August 1869 from a settlement on 
the Santa Cruz on his long journey northwards with a 
band of these natives. The march was one long hunting 
excursion, varied with murderous wranglings and en- 
counters, generally of a friendly nature, with other 
kindred groups. For the Patagonians are not a warlike 
people, and though very quarrelsome amongst themselves, 
especially in their drinking bouts, have always lived on 
a peaceful footing with their neighbours. 

When on the march, a halt of a few days would now 
and then be made in some verdant glen, where the 
produce of the chase would be cooked and eaten, and the 
toldos pitched for the night's rest. The toldo, a kind of 

1 Dr. Paul Ehrenreich, Urleicohner Brasilicns, pp. 121, 125. Some of 
these Bororos were found to be 6 feet 4 inches in licight, although "the 
tallest were not measured." 



ARGENTINA 387 

tent, easily constructed, is the only shelter of this home- 
less, wandering race. A row of forked posts about 3 feet 
high is driven into the ground, and a ridge-pole laid 
across in front of these ; at a distance of about 6 feet a 
second row 5 feet high, also with a ridge-pole ; and at 
the same distance from these a third row 6 feet high is 
fixed. A covering made of guanaco skins, smeared with 
a mixture of grease and red ochre, is drawn over from 
behind and secured by thongs to the front poles. Hide 
hangings, fastened between the inner poles, partition off 
the sleeping places, while the baggage piled round the 
sides serves to exclude the cold air. In bad weather an 
additional covering is secured to the front, and brought 
down over an extra row of short poles, making all snug. 
The duty of pitching and striking the toldo devolves on 
the women, a number of whom accompanied the party, 
who were mounted on good serviceable horses ridden 
without saddles. 

Ascending the Chico valley towards the north-west 
they soon came in sight of the snowy Cordillera, which 
for hundreds of miles limited the view on their left. 
Moving along the base of the mountains, excursions were 
occasionally made into the upland valleys and wooded 
slopes, where wild cattle were chased. Fartlier north 
the country became more wild and rugged, being furrowed 
by narrow ravines, deep and gloomy gorges through 
which flowed torrential streams. Beyond the Eio Limay 
a visit was paid to the more settled Manzaneros, who are 
so called from their headquarters, the old Jesuit station 
of Las Manzanas, but are called Chennas by the Pata- 
gonians, and are an eastern branch of the Araucanians. 
From the Jesuits they appear to have acquired the art 
of extracting a good cider from the apples of the district, 
and also a stronger drink from the algarroba bean. But 



388 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the Tehuelches have nothing but the vile foreign spirits 
which, combined with epidemics, and especially small- 
pox, is rapidly thinning their numbers. In Musters' 
time they had been reduced from over 20,000 to 3000, 
and were estimated in 1899 at not more than 300 souls. 

Besides their tall statiu-e, this observer describes them 
as exceedingly well proportioned, with an astonishing 
muscular development in the arms, great walking power, 
and tlie faculty of enduring total abstinence from food 
for days together with little or no inconvenience. 
Hardships and labour produce no ill effects even on the 
women, though age renders them quite repulsive. The 
men wear the cliiripa (drawers), never laid aside, and a 
warm loose cloak of guanaco skin, with hairy side in and 
the outside painted in various colours. The hair is re- 
tained by a broad fillet, or even a net, and that of the 
women worn with two pigtails, at times eked out with 
horse-hair. Both sexes wear silver ornaments, and bedaub 
the face with red ochre or black earth and tattoo the 
fore-arm. 

They are great smokers, drinkers, and gamblers ; but 
in the wild state their chief business is the chase, pursuing 
the rhea and guanaco on horseback, and capturing them 
with the bola, in the use of which they excel. They 
worship, not the sun, but the new moon, and also believe 
in a great spirit, who created the Indians and the animals, 
and dispersed them from a certain hill in the interior of 
the land. But he is too good to injure them ; hence all 
their attention is devoted to the evil spirits, and especially 
the gualichu or chief demon, who has to be propitiated, 
or warded off by the medicine man. The gualichu takes 
up his position at the back of the toldo, always on the 
look out for an opportunity to molest the inmates. He 
may even enter the body and cause sickness, which the 



ARGENTINA 



389 



medicine man is expected to cure, while other evil beings 
inhabiting underground dwellings are warded off by 
respectful salutations and spells. The medicine men — 
wizards, doctors, priests all in one — have also to foretell 
the success or failure of undertakings, the issue of sickness 
and the future generally ; hence theirs is not an enviable 
position, the failure of their predictions being often 
pvmished with death. But, on the other hand, they are 
everywhere received with honour, and welcomed at all 
festive gatherings. 

Summing up their moral character. Lieutenant Musters 
describes them, not as ferocious savages and brigands, 
but rather as kindly, good-tempered, impulsive children 
of nature, moody perhaps, and fanciful in their likes and 
dislikes, hence firm . friends or confirmed enemies, un- 
truthful in minor matters, but always loyal to those whom 
they have learned to trust. All have now given in their 
submission to the Argentine authorities, no longer go 
about armed with the national spear and buckler, and 
even call themselves Christians. In any case the cruel 
practices formerly associated with their burial rites have 
fallen into disuse, and the bones of the dying are no 
longer broken, either to hasten the end or prepare them 
the more easily for interment in a foreshortened attitude. 

The Argentines and Italians 

Except the Calchaquis and Huarpes in the remote in- 
terior, there were no settled communities in the Argentine 
lands at the advent of the white man. All the other 
aborigines were in the wild state, mostly nomads scattered 
thinly over the country. Hence few alliances could take 
place between them and the intruders, and the result is 
that the Argentinos proper show a slighter strain of 



390 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Indian blood than most other Hispano- Americans. On 
the otiier hand, there is good reason to think that amongst 
the first settlers there was a considerable percentage both 
of Basques and of Moriscos, that is, forcibly converted 
Arabo-Berber Muhammadans from the southern provinces 
of the peninsula. The Basque language continued to be 
long current in several districts, and in the local Spanish 
idiom many Arabic terms occur, which have died out 
or had never found their way into the Castilian of 
the central and northern provinces. But all are now 
merged in a single nationality, whose homogeneous 
character is menaced by the large stream of European 
immigrants steadily pouring into the country, especially 
from Italy. 

At first arriving with the intention of returning to 
their homes after earning enough to live at ease for the 
rest of their days, the Italians have in recent years shown 
an increasing tendency to remain in a land where they 
are welcomed, where the conditions of existence are easier, 
and where their sons escape from the hated conscription. 
To capitalists they are a source of great wealth, for their 
labour is both cheap and good. They are preferred to 
all others as day labourers on the farms, being hard 
workers, frugal and contented, and with a little instruc- 
tion they soon make excellent mechanics. They already 
number considerably over half a million, keeping some- 
what aloof from the rest of the population, and maintain- 
ing their own schools, to which the Italian Government 
contributes, on the condition that the teaching be carried 
on in the Italian language. But this artificial aloofness 
must gradually yield to the subtle influences which tend 
to uniformity in all large political communities, and the 
slow process of fusion will doubtless bring about new 
ethnical combinations of all the Latin and Teutonic 



ARGENTINA 



391 



elements, on the consequences of which it would be 
premature to speculate. 



Topography 

In Argentina the rapid material progress of the last 
few decades is reflected in the great increase of the urban 
groups, several of which, mere rural villages a few years 
ago, are now flourishing cities of many thousand inhabi- 
tants. The subjoined table shows that towns with 
populations of 10,000 and upwards are more numerous 
than in any other South American State, while Buenos 
Ayres, capital of the republic, is by far the largest city in 
the whole of Latin America, and outnumbered only by 
three in the United States — New York with Brooklyn, 
Chicago and Philadelphia. 



Towns. 
Buenos Ayres 
Rosario . 
Cordoba 
La Plata 
Tucuman 
Meudoza 
Santa Fe 
Parana . 
Corrientes 
Salta 

San Nicolas 
Chivilcoy 
Gualeguaychu 
Concordia 
Rio Cuarto 



Pop. (1S9S). 
753,000 
95,000 
66,000 
65,000 
34,000 
29,000 
25,000 
24,000 
19,000 
17,000 
15,000 
15,000 
13,000 
13,000 
12,000 



Towns. 


Pop (1S9S) 


San Juan 


12,000 


Gualeguay 


11,000 


San Luis 


11,000 


Concepcion 


10,000 


Santiago del Estero 


10,000 


Barrancas al Sud . 


10,000 


Mercedes 


10,000 


Azul 


8,000 


Pergamino 


8,000 


Nogoya . 


8,000 


Dolores . 


8,000 


Catamarca 


7,000 


Bahia Blanca . 


7,000 


La Rioja 


6,000 


Tandil . 


6,000 



In the territory of Misiones and the province of 
Entre Bios the few agricultural settlements — Concepcion, 
Santo Tome, Yapeyu, Monte Caseros — nearly all occupy 
the sites of the old Jesuits' " missions," and are still in- 
habited by quiet, industrious half-breeds, amongst whom 



392 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the Guarani element largely predominates. Yapeyu, 
on the right bank of the Uruguay, was for a time the 
headquarters of these missions, but has since been 
re-named San Martin, in honour of the famous revolu- 
tionary hero born in this place. Farther down follow 
the riverine ports of Concordia, facing the Uruguayan 
town of Salto, and Colon, opposite Paysandu, both 
accessible to large steamers at high water. Colon serves 
as the outlet for the produce of the thriving colony of 
San Jos4, founded by some Swiss and Savoy peasants in 
1863. Gualeguaychu and Gnaleguay, both named from 
the sluggish streams on which they stand, have shared 
in the prosperity of this fertile " Mesopotamia," and are 
now amongst the richest places in Entre Eios. But 
at present the largest town in this province is the port 
of Parana, which faces Santa Fe on the main stream, 
and for a time (from 1852 to 1861) enjoyed the dis- 
tinction of being the capital of the Eepublic. 

Corrientes, capital of the province of Corrientes, was 
founded in 1588 on the left bank of the Parana 15 
miles below the Paraguay confluence and 830 miles 
above Buenos Ayres, with which it is connected both by 
rail and by a regular service of steamers. Its full name 
is San Juan de las Siete Corrientes (" St. John of the Seven 
Currents "), in reference to the rapids which are developed 
by the reefs projecting at this point of the river without, 
however, offering any serious obstruction to the naviga- 
tion. Corrientes is one of the largest places on the left 
bank of the Parana, and here have been established the 
building and repairing docks for the steamers plying 
between the estuary and Paraguay. 

On the west side of the Parana the improved com- 
munications by rail and river have attracted numerous 
settlers from France, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy to 



AEGENTIXA 393 

the province of Santa Fe, which is named from its 
capital, the city of Santa Fe, founded by Juan de Garay 
in 1573 at the confluence of the Salado with the main 
stream. Santa F^, formerly the headquarters of the 
Jesuits' missions among the refractory Gran Chaco 
Indians, is now a flourishing riverine port, serving as 
the outlet for the produce of Esperanza and the many 
other agricultural stations of the surrounding district, 
which owe their prosperity mainly to the system of 
small holdings here adopted. The capital, which is 
rapidly encroaching on the plains south of the Salado, 
does not stand on the main stream, but on a lateral 
riacho (branch), draining the shallow Guadalupe lagoon 
to the Colastine channel. Here is the port of Colastine, 
which is accessible to vessels drawing over 20 feet even 
at low water, and is connected with Santa Fe by a 
railway 7 miles long, over which most of the traffic is 
carried. 

Rosario, near the Carcaraiia confluence, was a mere 
village of 2000 or 3000 inhabitants in the middle of 
the nineteenth century ; now it is the second city in the 
State, with a population rapidly approaching 100,000. 
It owes its expansion partly to its position at the point 
where the Parana begins to bend round towards the 
estuary, and partly to the troublous times when Buenos 
Ayres had seceded from the Confederacy and the central 
government was stationed at Parana. In 1854 a State 
railway was ordered to be constructed from Eosario to 
Cordoba, while a large reduction of dues was decreed in 
favour of vessels ascending the Parana without calling 
at Buenos Ayres. Eosario, which is accessible to ships 
drawing 16 feet, immediately became the main outlet 
for all the inland })rovinces, and continues to be visited 
by a large number of Trans-Atlantic liners, wiiich here 



AEGENTINA 395 

ship metals, ores, wheat, hides, alalfa grass and other 
produce for Europe and the United States. Its prosperity 
was ensured by the development of the agricultural 
settlements founded by Italian, German, Swiss, and other 
immigrants, all of whom succeeded except the English. 
Hence the name of Eosario bears an evil repute in 
England, being associated chiefly with grossly misman- 
aged colonisation schemes ending in utter ruin. 

But the class of colonists sent out by the speculators 
was such as to make failure a foregone conclusion. At 
Frayle Muerto, between Eosario and Cordoba, Mr. Knight 
met some survivors of the ill-fated Henley venture, started 
by a number of young English gentlemen, "unsteady, 
fresh from school and college and regiment, without any 
practical knowledge of anything, who arrived at Eosario 
in a batch, and considerably astonished the natives 
by their manners and customs. Drinking, gambling 
and horse-racing was the order of the day; the capital 
they had brought with them took unto itself wings ; 
the natives smiled at the ways of the locos In/jleses 
('mad Englishmen')" (o^j>. cit p. 158), and the now 
thriving little town of Erayle Muerto has been mostly 
built on the spoils wrung from them by publicans and 
usurers. 

The province of Jujuy, in the far north-west, takes its 
name from its capital Jujuy, founded in 1 5 9 2 by Velasco 
on the San Francisco head-stream of the Bermejo 4000 
feet above sea-level. Although lying in a fertile well- 
watered district yielding an abundance of agricultural 
produce, Jujuy has not prospered, and at present owes its 
importance mainly to the transit trade with Bolivia. 
Here the historical highway leads through the old 
Quichuan town of Humakuaca near the source of the San 
Francisco over the Cortaderas Pass (12,970 feet) to the 



396 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRA.VEL 

plateau. Below Jujuy follows the riverine port of Oran 
at the head of the navigation of the Bermejo, which is 
here formed by the junction of the San Francisco with 
the Tarija from Bolivia. Canoes and flat-bottomed boats 
ascend the Bermejo to this point, which is 1860 miles 
from Buenos Ayres. But the difficulty and tedious 
water traffic is now almost entirely replaced by that of 
the Tucuman (Great Northern) railway, which has been 
extended all the way to Jujuy. 

The province of Salta is also named from its capital, 
Salta, which lies on the route between Jujuy and 
Tucuman, and carries on a brisk frontier trade both 
with Bolivia and Chili. The name is familiar in England 
in connection with the financial speculator, Jabez Balfour, 
who after the crash for a time escaped the arm of justice 
by retiring to this remote Argentine town. 

South of Salta follows the old Quichuan district of 
Tucuman, with its capital of like name, founded in 1585 
on a rich and highly cultivated plain at the western foot 
of the superb Sierra Aconquija. Tucuman is a historical 
city connected with many of the stirring events both of 
the Spanish wars and of the subsequent civil commotions, 
and here was proclaimed the independence of the land 
in 1816. Since the opening of the Great Northern 
Eailway numerous European immigrants have settled in 
the district, which is covered with farm-steads, sugar and 
coffee plantations, while the local refineries and distilleries 
yield many thousand tons of sugar, and large quantities 
of cana (rum), much prized in the surrounding lands. 
But the glowing accounts of the natural resources of 
the province have to be taken with some reserve, and 
serious drawbacks are certainly the periodical flights of 
locusts, the permanent swarms of mosquitoes, and especi- 
ally the dangerous chuchu fever, which is endemic, 



ARGENTINA 397 

being due to the foul exhalations from all the swampy 
depressions. 

In Peruvian times the term Tucma, of which Tucuman 
appears to be a modified Spanish form, had a much 
wider application than at present. It certainly included 
the neighbouring province of Santiago del Ester o, named 
from its capital, which was founded in 1563 on the right 
bank of the Eio Dulce in the midst of lagoons and 
esteros (" morasses "). These swampy tracts form part of 
the shifting bed of the river, which occasionally returns 
to its old channels, causing disastrous floods, as in the 
year 1633, when many of the inhabitants removed, some 
to Tucuman, others to Cordoba. Then came the Jesuits, 
who under almost overwhelming difficulties transformed 
the place to the centre of a sort of theocratic government, 
like that of Paraguay. After their dispersion Santiago 
fell to the position of a half-forgotten rural hamlet, from 
which it has again recovered since it has become a 
station on the Cordoba-Tucuman section of the Northern 
Eailway. Its sugar industry employs a considerable 
number of hands, while the climate is improved as 
the land gets di'ained and brought more under cultiva- 
tion. 

West of Tucuman, and separated from it by the 
Aconquija range, lies the much larger but far less 
favoured province of Catamarca, with its capital of like 
name, founded in 1 6 8 on the Eio del Valle, nearly 1900 
feet above sea-level. The " valley," which is enclosed west 
and east by the Sierras Ambato and Ancaste, southern 
ramifications of Aconquija, runs out in the Salinas, that 
is, the salt plains which separate these mountains from 
the Cordoba heights. Close to the point of bifurcation, 
where the system culminates in the lofty peak of Acon- 
quija, are situated the Andalgala copper-mines, the most 



398 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

productive iii Argentina. They take their name from 
a now extinct or absorbed Calehaqui tribe, by whom 
they were worked under the Incas, and afterwards for- 
gotten, or, according to the tradition, concealed from the 
Spaniards by the Indians for over 300 years. Since 
their re-discovery about 1850, they have yielded a yearly 
output of nearly 2500 tons of ore, which is smelted at 
the Pilciaio works, and found to contain from 5 to 7 
per cent of pure metal. Catamarca is an important 
station on the Great Northern Railway, by which 
it communicates in one direction with Cordoba and 
Rosario, in another with the three provincial capitals, 
Rioja, San Juan, and Mendoza, following in the direction 
from north to south along the eastern slopes of the 
Chilian Andes. 

At the east foot of the Velasco heights lies the 
town of Eioja, which commands a wide prospect of one of 
the most fertile districts in Argentina. Wherever water 
can be procured, the light porous soil of the Eioja plains 
yields splendid crops of wheat, wine, and oranges. But 
the supply is limited, and it has been found impossible 
to greatly enlarge the area of the cultivable land by 
irrigation works. Moreover, the climate appears to be 
growing drier, and the western Eio Bermejo, which flows 
through the province of Eioja southwards to the Silvero 
lagoon, reaches that basin only during the floods. 
Farther north the whole district between the Velasco 
and Famatina ranges is highly metalliferous, abounding 
in gold, silver, copper, iron, and nickel to such an extent 
that the mountain torrents are so charged with mineral 
particles as to be useless for irrigation purposes. Cliilecito 
or Villa Argentina (" Silver Town "), chief centre of the 
mining operations, which were begun early in the nine- 
teenth century, is now connected by rail with the general 



ARGENTINA 



399 



Argentine system, and also communicates through Fama- 
tina and over the mountain passes with the Chilian 
province of Atacama. 

Mineral deposits abound also in the adjoining province 
of San Juan, whose capital of like name was founded in 
the year 1561 on the Kio San Juan. This copious stream 




AVKN'IDA S. MARTIN, MKXDOZA. 



feeds a large number of irrigation rills, by which exten- 
sive tracts have been brought mider cultivation, and then 
falls through two liranches into the (ruanacache lagoon. 
This basin in its turn discharges through two outlets east 
to Lake Silvero a,nd south by the Eio Mendoza to the 
plain on which stands the city of Mendoza, where it is 
absorbed in tlie surroundinu' irrio-ation canals. 

Mendoza, capital of the province named from it, and 



400 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGUAl'IIY AND TKAVEL 

formerly metropolis of the Viceroyalty of La llata, was 
founded in 1560, and lasted just three centuries to the 
year 1861, when it was overwhelmed by one of the most 
tremendous earthquakes on record. Of its 15,000 in- 
habitants from 10,000 to 12,000 perished amid the 
ruins of the houses and churches, nearly all of which 
collapsed. But the place was soon rebuilt near the old 
site, and is at present one of the largest and finest cities 
in Argentina. " Fine public buildings, private dwellings 
that indicate comfort and convenience, gardens with their 
fruitful vines and fig-trees, walnut trees and poplars 
grace the public streets and walks ; but above all, the 
pleasant promenade, more than half a mile in length, 
with its streams of running water flowing on both sides 
beneath tlie shade of two double rows of well-grown 
trees. Add to this the mountain torrent, which rolls 
past Mendoza along its bed of rounded stones and gravel 
from the mighty Cordillera, whose slopes reach almost to 
the city."^ 

The prosperity of Mendoza is due partly to tlie 
cultivation of the vine, and partly to its position 
on the great historical highway to the Pacific, which 
is soon to be replaced by the Trans-Andean Eailway 
crossing the Cordillera near Aconcagua (see p. 336). This 
is the most direct route between Buenos Ayres and Val- 
paraiso, and the line when completed must become one 
of the great commercial and international highways of 
the globe. Mendoza is also the centre of a rich agri- 
cultural district, and exports considerable quantities of 
fodder (lucerue), wine, hides, cattle, and other produce 
both to Chili and Buenos Ayres. As many as 50,000 
head of cattle are forw^arded in some jea.vs over the 
Cumhre Fuss to the Chilian markets. A little to the 

^ R. Crawford, Across the Pampas and the Andes, ]>. 186. 



ARGENTINA 



401 



north-west is the much frequented UspaJlata Pass, which 
crosses the Andes near Aconcagam at a height of 12,795 
feet, 

South of Mendoza the chief centre of population is 
iSaiL Ilafacl, near the source of the Eio Diamante, which 
flows eastwards intermittently to the Eio Salado below 
the Bebedero lagoon. Formerly a frontier station and 




SUMMIT OF rSPALLATA PASS [LA CUMBRE). 

outpost against the predatory I'ampas Indians, San Eafael 
has now become a flourishing agricultural settlement, 
forwarding its produce by the Planclion and Cruz de 
Piedra Passes over the Andes to Chili. Here are also 
extensive coalfields, which, judging from the imperfect 
surveys, seem to reach all the way to the Neuquen dis- 
trict, and yield an excellent fuel, the seams being in some 
places from 10 to 12 or 14 feet thick. 

East of Mendoza, but still for the most part within the 
VOL. I 2 D 



402 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

drainage area of the Eio Salado (Upper Colorado closed 
basin), lies the arid province of San Luis, which takes 
its name from its capital San Luis, founded in 1597 by 
Martin de Loyola on the slopes of the Funta de los 
Venados, 2500 feet above sea-level. Fruits and the 
vine are cultivated in the surrounding district by 
artificial irrigation from a reservoir containing several 
hundred million cubic feet of water. But the capital is 
already threatened with the rivalry of Villa de Mercedes, 
founded so recently as 185 6 in a much more favourable 
position on the left bank of the Eio Quinto. Here is 
the converging point of several railway lines south of 
the Cordoba heights, and here the fertile plains are 
watered by several canals fed by the main stream, which 
flows perennially for some distance beyond Mercedes. 

From this place the Trans-Continental Eailway runs 
north-east to Villa Nueva, where the Great Northern 
branches off north-west to Cordoha, capital of the vast 
province of the same narae — a kingdom in itself, aljound- 
ing in all kinds of natural resources, and with a magnifi- 
cently diversified area nearly as large as the v/liole of 
England and Wales combined, but with a present popula- 
tion scarcely exceeding that of the city of Leeds. 

But in colonial times this region was secluded from 
the rest of the world by the policy of the Jesuits, who 
had made the capital a city of churches and convents, 
and the headquarters of their missions amongst the 
surrounding aborigines. Later, the southern districts 
continued to be exposed to the depredations of the 
Eanqueles and other marauding Pampean tribes, who 
were still scouring the plains and sweeping away the 
live-stock of the settlers so recently as the year 18S-i. 
Thus all real progress was retarded .till the country was 
opened up by the development of railway enterprise 



ARGENTINA 



403 



during tlie last two decades. Founded in 15*73 l»y 
Cabrera in the upper valley of the Rio Priniero, Cordoba 
continued to sleep away its days even long after the 
expulsion of the Jesuits in 1767. But since, the com- 
pletion of the lines bringing it into connnunication with 
the outer world its expansion has been remarkable. It 
already ranks for population next to Buenos Ayres and 




CATHEDRAL ill- 



liosario, and is rapidly becoming the chief centre of 
trade, the industries and intellectual life in the interior 
of the country. The university, dating from the 
eighteenth century, was reconstituted on a liberal basis 
in 1870, and here are also several other scientific and 
literary institutions, notal)ly an observatory, to which 
astronomers are indebted for a valuable chart of ihe 
southern constellations. But the mint, which formerly 
coined the gold from the neighbouring uplands, has been 



404 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

closed since the mines have ceased to be profitably 
worked. 

The attempts made to suppy Cordoba with water for 
irrigation and general purposes by constructing a huge 
dam across the bed of the Rio Primero have not been 
entirely successful, and nearly caused the destruction of 
the city in 1890 when, after a heavy downpour, a great 
part of the contents of the reservoir escaped and swept 
away several hundred houses. But, although greatly 
reduced in size, the artificial lake is still 70 feet deep, 
and contains 2000 million cubic feet, sufficient for all 
local wants, and for the irrigation of over 100,000 
acres. 

Amongst some of their neighbours, the people of 
Cordoba, mostly half-breeds of a somewhat ugly type, 
have the reputation of being the greatest thieves and mur- 
derers in South America. But the Cordobans retort by 
accusing those of Santiago and Santa Fe of all the crimes 
under heaven ; and so it is generally throughout the 
republic. But the experience of most travellers is that 
all alike are rather a kindly, hospitable people, usually 
peaceful and well conducted. " Organised bands of ban- 
ditti, as they have in Mexico, are quite unknown here, 
unless it be in revolution times, when every South 
American becomes more or less of a brigand for the 
nonce. It is, indeed, creditable to these poor half-breeds 
that, left to themselves as they are, they should be so 
law -observing and orderly. Mule -trains laden with 
silver dollars often make enormous journeys here without 
an armed escort being deemed necessary to accompany 
them. If the people that inhabit these wild steppes 
were of Anglo-Saxon blood, it strikes me that this would 
hardly be the case." ^ 

^ Knight, vol. i. p. 199. 



ARGENTINA 405 

Buenos Ayres, one of the great cities of the New 
World, and capital of Argentina, but not of the State 
named from it, was founded in 1535 by Diego de 
Mendoza on the south side of the Plate estuary, at the 
point where the monotonous shore line is indented by a 
little pampean creek appropriately called the Riachuelo 
(" Brooklet "). But the surrounding plains were at that 
time held by the Querandi, a powerful branch of the 
Pampas or Gennaken Indians, who resented the in- 
trusion of the w^hites in their territory, and after a- fierce 
struggle compelled them to abandon the settlement in 
1542. Owing to the hostility of the still more warlike 
Charruas, no attempt could be made to gain a footing on 
the north (Uruguayan) side, while the safety of the 
inland stations above the Parana delta made the posses- 
sion of a strong trading-place in the estuary a matter 
of urgent necessity. Hence the Spaniards returned in 
1580, and under the able command of Juan de Garay 
effectively established themselves on the Riachuelo. 

Then the military difticulties were followed by fiscal 
troubles, caused by the jealousy of the Cadiz and Seville 
merchants, who enjoyed a monopoly of the colonial trade 
by the Colombian and Peruvian routes. Through their 
influence the central government was induced to issue 
the famous decree that all merchandise destined for the 
Plate estuary should be forwarded by the way of Peru 
over the Cordilleras and down the Paraguay river. No 
doubt this absurd regulation was partly thwarted by 
the contraband trade, which inevitably sprang up in the 
Plate river ; but the progress of the colony was greatly 
retarded till the year 1776, when the whole of the 
Argentine region was divorced from its unnatural 
commercial and political dependence on Peru, and con- 
stituted a separate Viceroyalty under the Crown. Since 



406 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

then Buenos Ayres, despite endless political troubles^ 
internal strife, financial catastrophes, and epidemics, has 
continued to prosper, thanks more to its geographical 
position at the entrance of the vast Parana-Paraguay 
basin than to any specially favourable conditions of soil 
or climate. Indeed the Fuerto, as it was called by its 
founder, was no " port " or haven, but an open roadstead 
in shallow water exposed to fierce south-easterly gales, 
and only in recent times transformed to an artificial port 
by the constiniction of docks, basins, breakwaters, and 
other extensive harbour-works. 

The city, laid out in the usual chess-board plan, 
presents little to arrest attention beyond some really 
fine public buildings, conspicuous amongst which are the 
federal Houses of Parliament, the Post Oftice, Custom 
House, Opera House, Cathedral, several banks and rail- 
way stations. The terminus of the Great Southern line 
is quite a palatial structure, with marble halls and stair- 
cases, sculptures, carvings and a noble frontage. But 
for the excellently managed tramways radiating in all 
directions, traffic would have been difficult along tlie 
formerly ill-paved and ill-kept thoroughfares. "Euts 
and hollows in which one could lie down and disappear 
abound. Several of the roads have never been metalled, 
and are still mere earthen tracks. In dry weather they 
are inches deep in dust, and when heavy rain comes on, 
they are a deep sea of liquid mud." ^ 

This was in 1887, and since then great improvements 
have taken place. The streets are now paved with 
asphalt, wood, and quarried stone, and a great drainage 
system has also been carried out, thanks to which the 
former visitations of yellow fever have almost dis- 
appeared, for the climate is not naturally insalubrious, 
1 Dr. E. K. P. Edgcunibe, Zqj/n/rus, p. 181. 



408 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

though the mortality is still rather high. The water 
required for general purposes is brought by an aqueduct 
and a very long tunnel from the estuary five miles 
higher up, where it is quite fresh ; but the supply is 
insufhcient — about 15,000,000 gallons daily — and has 
to be supplemented by numerous Artesian wells, some of 
which are fed by infiltrations from the Parana, and 
appear to be inexhaustible. 

Buenos Ayres, capital of the Eepublic, ceased to be 
the capital of the province in the year 1882, when the 
provincial government was removed to JEnsenada, thirty 
miles lower down the Plate estuary. To understand the 
cause of this change, it should be stated that, after 
joining the confederacy in 1860, Buenos Ayres, the 
largest and hy far the wealthiest and most populous of 
all the united provinces, became for a time the dominant 
power in the republic. She was not only an imperium 
in imperio, but aspired to the position of arbitrator and 
controler of the destinies of the whole country. But 
finding lier supremacy threatened by the steady growth 
of the other provinces, and her unconstitutional action 
]"esisted 1 »y the National Government, she made an abortive 
attempt to secede from the confederacy in 1880, and 
again set up for herself as before the year 1860. After 
a short and half-hearted struggle the revolt collapsed, the 
city of Buenos Ayres w^as constituted a federal district, 
like that of Colombia (Washington) in the United 
States, and the seat of the provincial administration 
transferred in 1882 to Ensenada, which was then re- 
named La Plata. 

Then was witnessed a remarkable transformation. 
The whole energies of the province were concentrated 
on the effort to create a new capital worthy of its 
unchallenged position, as the most enterprising and in- 



410 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AKD TPAVEL 

fluential ineniber of the coiifecleracy, and in an incredibly 
short time the ol)scure village of Ensenada was changed, 
as by the magician's wand, to a stately seat of govern- 
ment, with puljlic buildings of every description — a 
complete range of departmental structures, legislative 
chambers, law-courts, treasury, official residences, railway 
stations, and so forth — all planned and executed on quite 
a magnificent scale. Harbour works have also been 
designed and partly carried out to attract some of the 
ever-increasing trade of the estuary, while the interests 
of science and letters have been amply provided for by a 
university, a well-equipped observatory, and the noble 
Museo de la Plata, where is already housed one of the 
richest zoological and archaeological collections in the 
world. In 1899 the population was estimated at 70,000, 
and its enthusiastic citizens already foresee the time when 
La Plata will rival the great federal capital itself in size 
and opulence. In truth, there would appear to be 
ample room for two such cities as Buenos Ayres, on 
the vast waterway which washes the shores of an ad- 
ministrative department 5000 square miles larger than 
England and Wales together, and gives access to one of 
the great fluvial basins of the New World. 

In the Patagonian territories south of Buenos Ayres 
— Rio Negro, Neuquen, Chubut, and Santa Cruz — there 
are strictly speaking no urban groups, but only small 
and struggling agricultural settlements, such as Carmen 
on the Eio Negro, Chos-lfalal, Norquin, and Junin de los 
Andes, in the upland pastoral districts at the foot of the 
Cordillera ; or else little fishing-stations, such as Fort 
Desire, St. Julian, Santa Cruz, and Gallerjos, awaiting the 
development of the interior to become busy seaports. Of 
all these places the most interesting to Englisli readers 
is the Welsh colony of Port Madryn, founded in 1865 



AEGENTINA 



411 



on the nearly land-locked Golfo JVuevo, and connected by 
rail with the settlements of Trelcw and Rawson, on the 
left bank of tho Lower Chnbut, a little farther south. 
Tlie climate is cold and the soil not over-fertile ; but 




MU.SEO i>E LA PLATA. 



there is plenty of water obtained by capturing- the flooded 
stream of the Chubut, and the hard-working settlers 
possess the qualities of patience and endurance. So there 
is hope that this little " New Wales " may establish itself 
permanently on the bleak seaboard of South Patagonia. 
But it can scarcely any longer be called a " Welsh 



412 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

colony." Not more than half of the inhabitants are of 
that nationality, and the finest warehouses are now 
owned by Italians. In 1899 over 40,000 acres were 
under wheat, and the live-stock (sheep, cattle, and horses) 
numbered about 50,000. 



Historic Retrospect 

For several decades after the declaration of independ- 
ence at Buenos A.Yres in 1810, Argentina, which at that 
time included the Banda Oriental, that is, the present 
republic of Uruguay, constituted a number of semi- 
independent states, with little political cohesion, and no 
universally recognised central government. This was, 
moreover, a period of disastrous foreign wars, of internal 
strife, anarchy, and general political confusion, during 
which nothing was done to forward the common interests 
of the land. Scarcely had the Spaniard disappeared 
when Buenos Ayres plunged into an unsuccessful war 
with Paraguay (1811). 

Then the Banda Oriental, Santa F^, Corrientes, Entre 
Eios, and Cordoba declared themselves an autonomous 
commonwealth under Artigas, " Protector of the Free " 
(1814). In 1828, after the execution of Dorrego, 
Governor of Buenos Ayres, a struggle broke out between 
the unionists and the federalists. The latter prevailed, 
but party words had lost their meaning, and nobody 
played the part of a despotic unionist more thoroughly 
than the " federalist," Eosas, who, despite of endless 
revolts, and the intervention of England and France, 
maintained one of the most oppressive dictatorships 
recorded in history for a period of twenty years. Even 
after his overthrow and escape on board an English 
vessel (1852) the intestine convulsions were followed by 



ARGENTINA 413 

the long and memorable war of the Allies with Paraguay, 
complicated with local revolts. 



Material Progress — Railway Enterprise 

But the expulsion of Eosas may, on the whole, be 
regarded as the turning - point in the history of 
Argentina, which after that event entered on a period 
of comparative rest, which has lasted to the present 
time not seriously broken except by the Buenos Ayres 
episode and financial troubles due to over-speculation, 
and a somewhat reckless expenditure of the public funds 
and foreign loans. Nevertheless substantial progress has 
certainly been made, thanks to the steady increase of 
the population both by immigration and a relatively 
high birth-rate, and to the stimulus given to trade and 
agriculture by the construction of roads, railways, and 
telegraphs. Some of the railways may have been built 
at an extravagant outlay — over £20,000 per mile where 
£4000 or £5000 should have sufficed — but the fact 
remains that nearly 10,000 miles have been completed 
(1899), and so planned that all the provinces and almost 
every important town in the country already enjoy the 
advantage of direct communication by rail with the 
capital. As in many parts of North America the 
locomotive has often preceded the carriage roads, and 
the construction of railways has been found more easy 
and economical in extensive alluvial tracts, where no 
materials are available for road-building. In 1898 the 
total capital invested in railway enterprise amounted 
to £105,000,000, while the gross receipts exceeded 
£6,000,000 and the expenses £3,200,000, showing a 
return of about 3 per cent on the outlay. 



414 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Agriculture and Stock-breeding 

Argentina is at present almost exclusively an agri- 
cultural and trading country, as shown by the fact that 
in 1897 the mineral exports had fallen to the insignifi- 
cant sum of £33,000 while tliose derived from the land 
(corn, cattle, hides, wool, etc.) exceeded £19,000,000, to 
which should be added £384,000 of forest products. 
Moreover, nearly all the industries — flour -mills, wine 
ftictories, distilleries, breweries and sugar -mills — are 
directly concerned with such agricultural produce as the 
corn, vine, and sugar-cane crops. Even these more or 
less primitive industries, and tillage itself, play quite a 
subordinate part compared with stock-breeding, which 
must long continue to be the chief source of national 
wealth. Thus, not more than 15 million acres are at 
present under cultivation, while the actual extent of 
arable land is estimated at 240 millions. 

But most of this vast area is useless for tillage, owing 
to the deficient rainfall, and the limited supply of 
running waters available for irrigation purposes. Hence 
the greater part of the land remains under grass, and 
while husbandry in the strict sense of the term is slowly 
developed, there seems to be no limit to the capacities 
of the country for sheep and cattle farming. In 1898 
the stock of sheep was returned at over 80 millions, 
of cattle at 22, horses nearly 5, and other animals 4 
millions, and in the same year animals and their 
products were exported to tlie value of £15,000,000, 
while the exports of farm produce, such as wheat and 
maize, scarcely exceeded £4,500,000. In the general 
movement of the foreign exchanges, the balance of trade 
is greatly in favour of the United Kingdom, whose 
exports to Argentina, chiefly textiles and hardware, were 



ARGENTINA 415 

valued in 1S97 at £7,250,000 compared with imports 
£2,600,000 in the same year. 



Government Political Situation 

The Constitution of Argentina dates only from 1853, 
the year after the expulsion of Eosas, and its character 
is somewhat indicated by the change then luade in the 
official designation of the country, which was formerly 
known as the " Provincias Unidas del Rio de la Plata," 
but is now simply the " Republica Argentina." In other 
words, despite the apparent triumph of the federalists 
in the battlefield, the unionist or centralising principle 
has been adopted as the basis of the present Constitution, 
which is somewhat closely modelled on that of the 
United States. The executive is entrusted to a President 
elected for six years by representatives of the fourteen 
provinces, equal to double the number of senators and 
deputies combined. A Vice-President, elected in the 
same way, holds the office of Chairman of the Senate, 
but enjoys no political power, whereas the President is 
ex officio commander-in-chief of the troops, and also 
appoints to all civil, military, and judicial offices. 
Neither is re-eligible, and both must be natives of 
Argentina, and Eoman Catholics. 

The legislative functions are exercised by a National 
Congress comprising a Senate and a House of Deputies. 
The Senate, numbering thirty, that is, two for each of the 
fourteen provinces and two for the capital, are returned 
by the legislatures of the several provinces, and by a 
college of electors in the capital. Since 1898 the 
deputies are elected for four years, in the proportion of 
one for every 33,000 inhabitants, one-half retiring every 
two years, while one-third of the Senate is renewed 



416 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

every three years. The Ministry, which is appointed and 
controlled by the President, comprises eight " Secretaries 
of State," one each for the Interior, Foreign Affairs, 
Finance, War, Justice, Agriculture, Marine, and Public 
Works. All these functionaries are subsidised, the 
President receiving £3600, the Vice-President £2400, 
each of the Secretaries £1800, and each member of 
Congress £1200 per annum. 

Although called " provinces," the federal divisions are 
really self-governing States, whose constitution is almost 
identical with that of the United States. The governors 
enjoy extensive powers, in the execution of which they 
are independent of the central authorities. Nor are 
they appointed by the President, but elected for terms 
of three and four years by the people, who also elect 
their own legislative assemblies, and generally enjoy a 
large measure of autonomy, even to the extent of con- 
tracting internal and foreign loans on their own responsi- 
bility. But by the federalisation of the old Buenos Ayres 
municipality, in which are concentrated one-sixth of the 
whole population and over two -thirds of the foreign 
exchanges, the hands of the central government have 
been greatly strengthened, and the ambitious aspirations 
of the province of Buenos Ayres permanently check- 
mated, so that the several provincial divisions can be 
trusted with the entire management of their own affairs, 
without risk to the stability of the National Government. 

It is doubtful whether any serious revolts will again 
take place, because the self-governing provinces have 
been deprived of any motive, and Buenos Ayres of the 
power, to rebel or secede. But military intrigues and 
local insurrections are always possible amongst such 
inflammable populations, and many risings did actually 
take place in Santiago, Corrientes, Catamarca, Tucuman, 



ARGENTINA 417 

Santa Fe, and in Buenos Ayres itself during the financial 
crisis of the years 1890-94. 



Religion — Education — Defences 

As might be inferred fr(jm the fact that the President 
must be a Eonian Catholic, Catholicism is recognised by 
the Constitution as the State religion. Nevertheless 
absolute tolerance of aU other beliefs prevails both in 
principle and in practice throughout the republic. Even 
the Jews are unmolested, and the flourishing agricultural 
settlement founded by the late Baron Hirsch as a refuge 
for those driven from Kussia by the Anti-Semitic wave 
of persecution, is allowed the free exercise of its religion, 
as well as the enjoyment of religious instruction in its 
own schools. It may be mentioned that this interesting 
philanthropic experiment has so far been fairly successful, 
and the Jewish settlers have here shown that they can 
be ffood farmers as well as traders and bankers. In 
1898' the colony, founded in 1891, had a population of 
8000 Prussian Jews, who had brought 80,000 acres 
under cultivation (chiefly wheat and maize), and owned 
about 15,000 head of cattle and horses. The settlements 
are not contiguous, but scattered over different parts of 
Santa Fe, Entre Rios, and Buenos Ayres, and are under 
the somewhat strict control of the Society appointed to 
administer the original capital of £2,000,000. 

Primary education is absolutely free, secular and 
compulsory for all children between six and fourteen 
years of age. The elementary schools are provided for 
by special taxes under the Education Acts, supplemented 
by large grants from the National Government. As 
much as £2,000,000 are annually applied in this way 
to the support of about 3750 schools with a total attend - 

VOL. I 2 E 



418 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

ance in 1898 of 266,000. Secondary and the higher 
education are provided for by sixteen Government 
lyceums, thirty -five normal schools, several technical 
institutions and three universities, — Buenos Ayres, La 
Plata, and Cordoba ; these last with faculties of law, 
medicine, and engineering, and a collective attendance of 
about 2500. 

Besides the External Debt and other public liabilities 
of over £80,000,000, the Provincial debts fall little 
short of £20,000,000, including arrears of interest, 
and the Municipal debts to about £3,000,000. Thus 
the total indebtedness exceeds £100,000,000, a heavy 
burden for a population of not much more than 
4,000,000. Yet nearly £3,000,000 are devoted to 
defensive purposes. The land forces comprise nearly 
10,000 effectives of all arms, and a national guard of 
480,000, most of whom now receive military training. 
With a view to possible hostilities with Chili over the 
boundary question, the navy has recently been strength- 
ened, and now comprises four coast defence armour-clads, 
six armed cruisers, ten smaller cruisers and gunboats, 
besides several destroyers and torpedo boats, with crews 
of about 5000 men. 



th' 

Br^ 

lar 

Eiol 

Bra 

whi 



CHAPTEE XII 



URUGUAY 



Extent, Area, Population— Physical Features— The Cuchillas— Hydro- 
gra]ihy— The Uruguay River — Climate— Flora — Fauna — Inhabitants 
— The Charruas — The Gauchos and Uruguayans — Topogra])hy — 
Historic Retrospect — FMihvay Enterprise — Resources — The Meat 
Industries — Government — Education — Finance. 



Extent, Area, Population 

Uruguay, smallest of the South American States, has at 
least the advantage of possessing well-defined and un- 
contested frontiers. All boundary questions have long 
been settled, nor could any have arisen except on the 
north side, where this fiery little republic is conterminous 
with the Brazilian province of Eio Grande do Sul. On 
the west the line of demarcation towards the Argentine 
province of Entre Eios follows the course of the Uruguay 
river from 30° S. lat. to the Parana delta, while the 
southern and eastern shores are washed by the waters of 
the Plate estuary and of the Atlantic as far as the 
Brazilian maritime district of Albardas de Silveira, and 
farther north by the Lagoa Mirini to the mouth of the 
Eio Jaguarao. This river serves as the frontier towards 
Brazil nearly to the Upper Eio Negro valley, beyond 
which the line coincides with the crest of the Serra 



420 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Sauta Anna, and then with the course of the Eio Qua- 
raiin (Quareim) to its confluence with the Uruguay. 

As thus delineated, Uruguay has an area of a little 
over 72,000 square miles, with a population which, in 
the absence of any official census, was estimated in 1898 
at 827,000, distributed over the nineteen departments as 
under : — - 



Departments. 
Monte Video 
Canelones 
Colonia 
Salto . 
Soriano 
Paysandu 
San Jose 
Florida . 
Durazno 
Cerro-Largo 
Tacuarembo 
ilinas 
Roelia . 
Maldonado 
Artigas . 
Treinta y Tre 
Rivera . 
Rio Negro 
Flores . 



Area in sq. miles. 


Pop. (est. 1S9S 


256 


264,838 


1,833 


68,553 


2,192 


41,021 


4,863 


37,586 


3,560 


36,369 


5,115 


40,431 


2,687 


34,441 


4,673 


36,024 


5,525 


30,064 


5,753 


29,909 


8,074 


27,929 


4,844 


28,401 


4,280 


25,976 


1,584 


23,086 


4,392 


21,716 


3,686 


22,615 


3,790 


18,767 


3,269 


24,369 


1,744 


15,390 



Total 



r2,iio 



827,485 



As in most of Argentina, the aborigines never were 
numerous, and consisted generally of fierce wild tribes, 
such as the Charruas, who, like the prairie Indians, mixed 
little with the white intruders. Few if any full-blood 
natives have survived the racial wars, which were carried 
with little intermission far into the eighteenth century. 
Hence, with the exception of a few groups of half-breeds 
resembling the Argentine Gauchos, and called by that 
name, though of less wild and restless habits, the present 



URUGUAY 421 

inliabitants of Uruguay may be regarded as of tolerably 
pure European descent. Nearly a fourth are even 
relatively recent arrivals — Spaniards, Italians, French, 
and especially Basques from both sides of the Pyrenees, 
while the rest are sprung from the early Spanish and 
Basque settlers. The Teutonic element has never been 
largely represented, and the English and Germans form 
but a slight percentage of the present inhabitants of 
Uruguay, where Spanish is the general medium of inter- 
course, understood if not spoken by all classes. 

Physical Features — The Cuchillas 

From the orographic standpoint Uruguay belongs, not 
to the Argentine pampas formation but to the Brazilian 
mountain system. Like the Andean Cordilleras, the 
Brazilian uplands fall gradually southwards, and in 
Uruguay some of the ranges scarcely exceed 2000 feet in 
height. But their geological connection with those of 
South Brazil is recognised even in the popular nomencla- 
ture, which calls these ranges not sierras but cuchillas, that 
is " knives," although the crests are not nearly so sharp or 
jagged as those of Kio G-rande do Sul. In fact they are 
for the most part rather gently rounded summits, which, 
however, terminate in many places in bare, rocky heights 
rising above the zone of herbaceous vegetation. The 
whole surface of the land is intersected and broken by 
these irregular cuchillas, where it is impossible to detect 
any uniform system or general trend. Thus the Cuchilla 
de Haedo, which traverses the north-western districts in 
a south-westerly direction, is separated by the Cibcliilla de 
Malhajar, running due east and west, from the Cuchilla 
Grande, which wanders in zigzag fashion over the 
southern and central departments, throwing off spurs 



422 COMPENDIUJNI OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

north-westwards to the Eio Jaguarao, and southwards to 
the coast between Monte Video and Maldonado. Here 
the Sierra de las Animas terminates seawards in several 
bold headlands, of which Monte Video is the most con- 
spicuous. 

In the north the prevailing formations are granites 
and gneiss, often underlying old eruptive matter, and here 
the land is mineralised to some extent with auriferous 
veins, lead and copper deposits, but apparently nowhere 
very abundantly. Along the banks of the Uruguay and 
some other rivers occurs the so-called jjiedra china, a 
flinty gravel of unorganic origin, besides great quantities 
of rough agates looking like large flints. These are 
largely exported to Germany, where they are manu- 
factured into innumerable little pebble boxes, letter- 
weights, and other fancy objects. Here also is met another 
natural curiosity, the cocos de mina (" mineral coconuts "), 
hollow crystalline clusters, which occasionally explode and 
are then said by the natives to have ripened. Such 
crystal pebbles, often beautifully coloured, are found in 
multitudes, especially in the rocky bed of the Quaraim, 
where they may be picked up in handfuls, when the 
river runs dry. In the grassy argillaceous plains every- 
where intersected and limited by the Cuchillas, are found 
embedded the remains of the Megatherium and other 
extinct animals, presenting the same types as those of 
the Argentine Tertiary beds. 

Hydrography — The Uruguay River 

Apart from a few insignificant coast-streams, such as 
the San Jos4, which enters the estuary at Monte Video, 
all the running waters find their way either to the Lagoa 
Merim or to the left Ijank of the Uruguay. The Merim 



URUGUAY 423 

basin, which sends its overflow through the Eio S. 
Gonzalo to the Lagoa dos Patos in Brazilian territory, 
receives nearly all the eastern drainage of the Cuchilla 
Grande mainly through the Bio Cebollati, with its tribu- 
taries, the Bios Gutlerra, Ulimar, del Parado, and a few- 
others. None of these are navigable, and are fringed 
along their lower courses by sedgy marshes, which during 
the Hoods are transformed to shallow lagoons. 

By far the largest affluent of the Uruguay is the 
Bio jVcgro, which, with its numerous ramifications — 
Tacuarcmlio, Mala, Yi, Grande, and others, drains about 
half of the whole territory. Kising within the Brazilian 
frontier it flows for about 280 miles between the 
Cuchillas Haedo and Grande south-westwards to the 
main stream at Soriano. It is navigable above the con- 
fluence as far as Mercedes, and a scheme of canalisation 
has been proposed, which if carried out would enable 
large vessels to ascend as far as the Tacuareinbo, besides 
supplying the irrigation waters required to bring large 
tracts of prairie under cultivation. 

The Uruguay, from which the republic takes its 
name, takes its rise in the Brazilian coast rano;e known 
as the Serra Geral, within 50 miles of the Atlantic. Its 
upper course, formed by the junction of the Pelotas, the 
Santa, Anna and the Maromhas, flows through South Brazil 
nearly due west to its junction with the Peperi Guazu, 
where it bends round to the south-west and south, and 
becomes the frontier stream between Brazil (Eio Grande de 
Sul) and Argentina (Misiones, Corrientes, and Entre Kios). 

Below the confluence of the Ihicuy Guazu, largest of 
its Brazilian affluents, the stream, here flowing nearly 
due south, leaves Brazilian territory, and for the rest of 
its course forms the boundary between Uruguay and 
Argentina. At Sal to, the " Falls," the channel is studded 



424 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

with rocks and reefs, permanently arresting the naviga- 
tion for large vessels, and these obstructions are followed 
1 2 miles lower down by the Scdto Grande, the " Great 
Falls," which, however, are falls only at low water. They 
appear to take their name, not so much from their size 
as in contrast to the Salto Chico, or '• Little Falls," which 
occur 9 miles farther on, and offer but slight impediment 
to ordinary river craft. In the lower reaches below Fray 
Bentos the Uruguay assumes the aspect of a lake, throw- 
ing off lateral branches to the Parana delta, and entering 
the head of the Plate estuary, a broad stream from 6 to 1 
miles wide. Here the right bank is low and periodically 
flooded, while the steep cliffs and bluffs on the opposite 
side rise well above the highest inundations, and are here 
and there crowned with picturesque clumps of trees. 

With a total estimated length of 960 miles and an 
•average width of over half a mile, the Uruguay is 
generally accessible to sea-going vessels for 200 miles to 
Paysandu, and at times for 400 miles to and beyond 
Santa Eosa on the Brazilian frontier. But it is of little 
use for purposes of navigation between Salto and Santa 
Eosa, where there is a total fall of 150 feet in about 100 
miles. During the annual floods, which occur generally 
in the months of August and September, and are caused 
by the heavy rainfall in the Santa Catharina, Eio Grande 
do Sul, and Misiones uplands, all the lower reaches are 
laid under water on the Argentine side, while the rise is 
as much as 50 feet higher up, where the current is con- 
tracted, as between Concordia and Salto. 



Climate 

Notwithstanding its relatively small extent, Uruguay, 
owing to its maritime position, comprises two climatic 



URUGUAY 425 

j5ones — an oceanic and an inland. In the former, which 
is generally more equable, the seasons are less sharply 
distinguished, the summer heats being less intense, the 
winters less severe on the seaboard than in the interior. 
In the northern districts and on the central plains the 
heat is extremely oppressive during the months of 
December, January, and February, while in June and 
July the glass often falls 5° or 6° below freezing-point. 
But for the whole country the normal range of the 
temperature is limited to about 36° to 100° Fahr. The 
climate may thus be described as warm, or sub-tropical, 
which answers fairly well to the lie of the land between 
30° and 35° S. lat. The chief drawbacks are the frequent 
storms, and the sudden shifting of the temperature caused 
by the south-western 'pamyeros, which, unchecked by any 
mountain barriers, blow with great fury over the whole 
land. 

From the standpoint of European colonisation it is 
important to note the differences of temperature under 
corresponding latitudes in both hemispheres. Thus 
Monte Video is much cooler than Biskra, and Salto than 
Alexandria, which is all in favour of Uruguay, where 
the Mediterranean settlers thrive well and even better 
than in the home-lands. Travellers never fail to notice 
the robust constitution, the broad chests and muscular 
frames of the Uruguayan drovers and " cowboys " employed 
on the ranchos and in the tinned-meat factories, and in 
all these respects they are certainly far superior to the 
Berbers, the Egyptians, and South Europeans. Of course 
in comparisons of this sort the question of diet cannot be 
overlooked. But if the easterns have perhaps too little, 
the westerns may be said to have too much meat — meat 
and nothing but meat, fresh or jerked, from one end of 
the year to the other. 



■42 6 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

In general there is sufficient moisture for stock- 
breeding, but not for tillage, except in some favoured 
districts. The annual rainfall no doubt averages about 
40 inches, but it is very unequally distributed both as 
to localities and seasons. By far the greater portion of 
the discharge is brought by the so-called pamjoero sucio 
(" dirty pampero "), which prevails in the summer months, 
and is accompanied by torrential downpours. " The sheets 
of water, that come down perfectly straight all through 
the day and night without a break, are accompanied by 
equally continuous thunder and lightning, which seem to 
work their way round the heavens and to box the entire 
compass. The thunder is one unceasing muffled roll, 
out of which burst sudden fierce claps of deafening 
violence ; the lightning playing meantime almost un- 
interruptedly at every point of the horizon, and leaping 
forth now and then into a OTeat scorching flame, which 
for a moment lights up the whole world with a lurid 
blue and yellow. The darkness, too, almost equals that 
of a dense London fog ; while the heat seems to increase 
rather than to yield to the storm, and one sits in a pro- 
longed vapour-bath, with the most trying sense of physical 
prostration and depression of spirits." ^ 



riora 

Herbaceous growths prevail to such an extent over 
all other vegetable forms, that the greater part of 
Uruguay may be described as a continuation of the 
Argentine pampas, the chief difference being that the 
land is more broken and hilly, while the grasses are 
more stunted, or at least shorter and sweeter. Even the 
unsociable ombu (Ficus omhu), the really characteristic 

^ The Great Silver River, p. 130. 



URUGUAY 427 

tree of the Argentine plains, from which, however, it 
has mostly vanished, forms also a conspicuous feature of 
the Uruguayan landscape, thriving where no other tree 
will take root, and affording a grateful shade to the 
scattered farmsteads. In recent years the resemblance 
between the two floras has been increased by the presence 
of the Australian eucalyptus, which has been successfully 
introduced on both sides of the Plate estuary. Trees, 
such as the willow and poplar, the inga (a bardy and 
leafy mimosa), besides the tacuara (a bamboo of vigorous 
habit) fringe the river-banks, while a distinctly arborescent 
vegetation begins to make its appearance towards the 
Brazilian frontier. Here flourish several species of palm, 
especially the yatai (Cocos yatai), the araucaria and some 
other forms characteristic of the Brazilian campos and 
selvas. 

But herbage remains the distinctive feature of the 
Uruguayan flora, and* of such excellent quality ' are the 
natural growths that the whole region has been described 
as an ideal grazing-ground. Throughout the central and 
southern departments little is to be seen except endless 
ranges of grassy hills, " splendid downlands rolling on in 
great billows league after league, and bearing a marked 
resemblance to our own Dorset downs at home, only cast 
in a rather larger mould, the finest pasture-land simply 
waiting for men to come and run up fences, and needing 
al:)Solutely nothing more to make the best of grazing 
farms. Elsewhere one hears of the toil of settlers in 
clearing their land, labour which in many parts means 
an initial cost of from £5 to £15 an acre. But on the 
rolling down of Uruguay man is called upon to do 
nothing, for the land is provided ready for him, with the 
best possible permanent pasturage laid down for his use. 
On these endless grassy downs there are no trees, save 



428 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

just along the gullies of the little streams, and about the 
estancias (farm-steads), which dot the plains at intervals 
of about every three miles." ■* 

Fauna 

As in long settled regions, such as Great Britain and 
China, most of the wild fauna has already disappeared 
from Uruguay, and given place to domestic animals — • 
chiefly horned cattle, sheep, and horses — all introduced 
by the white settlers and now covering the whole land 
in countless multitudes. Even the rhea has almost 
ceased to roam the plains in the w ild state, and is now 
for the most part confined within enclosures, forming 
" ostrich farms," like those of South Africa. Never- 
theless the indigenous fauna, which comprised both 
Argentine and Brazilian types, is still represented in the 
northern woodlands by the howling monkey and by 
caymans in the upper waters of the Uruguay, while the 
rattle-snake still lurks in the rocky recesses of the 
southern seaboard. Here also is met a land crab of 
burrowing habits, like the Cancer ruricola. 

It is noteworthy that European poultry do not thrive 
in Uruguay, where several species of the native avifauna 
still survive in considerable numbers. Large flocks are 
seen of the widely-diffused teru-tero, a handsome bird of 
the lapwing family, but disliked by sportsmen as "a 
common informer," warning other game of their approach. 
As on the pampas, every little eminence is surmounted 
by the tiny burrowing owl, blinking away in the full 
blaze of the sun ; large tawny-winged vultures keep silent 
watch on the wide- spreading branches of the solitary 
ombu, and the beautiful white heron lends animation 
to the scene in the flooded marshy depressions. 
- Zephyrus, p. 153. 



UEUGUAY 429 



Inhabitants — The Oharruas 



In pre-Columbian times Uruguay was occupied by 
several distinct ethnical groups, all living in a state of 
nature, or at least at a low stage of culture little removed 
from sheer savagery. Such were the Minuanos, the 
Boanes (Bohanes), Yaros, and Chanas (Chanases), some of 
whom were, no doubt, of Guarani stock, but others, 
perhaps the majority, were either allied to the Pampean 
Querandies, or else distantly connected with the Parana 
and Gran Chaco natives. All these were confined to 
the western and northern districts — the banks and 
islands of the Uruguay and the wooded tracts towards 
the present Brazilian frontier — while the rest of the 
land was roamed by the numerous and powerful Charrua 
nation. The Guarani tribes, for the most part of a mild 
and gentle disposition, were soon reduced and absorbed 
by the Spanish settlers, or else exterminated by the 
Charruas, who were dominant in the whole region from 
the Atlantic to the Uruguay. All the riverside groups, 
however, are not yet quite extinct, and in his mono- 
graph on the Chanas, the Argentine ethnologist, Lafone- 
Quevedo, locates the surviving Yaros east and west of 
the mouth of the Uruguay, and some Chanas south of 
the Parana delta, and also shows that these Chanas were 
not of Guarani speech, as hitherto supposed.-*^ 

That the Charruas were fierce nomads, and perhaps 
even cannibals, like many of the Brazilian coast tribes, 
appears from the record of their very first conflict with the 
whites. When Juan Diaz de Solis revisited the Plate 
estuary in 1515, he landed with some of his followers 
at the mouth of the Eio Martin Chico on the north side, 
and here the whole party were cut off, killed, and, as 

^ Los Indios Chanases y su Leiujua, Buenos Ayres, 1899. 



•130 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

was reported, eaten by a band of these natives, who are 
described by all the early Spanish and Portuguese writers 
as amongst the most cruel and ferocious of the South 
American aborigines. But nobody questioned their 
valour and dauntless love of independence, disputing 
every inch of their territory, first with the rude weapons 
of the tribe — bow and arrows, club or stone axe — and 
afterwards mounted on the horses and with the fire-arms 
they had wrested from the intruders. In the struggle, 
prolonged over three centuries, the whole nation perished, 
preferring death to loss of freedom. 

About the year 1750 the Charruas had already been 
driven north of the Eio Negro, where they formed an 
alliance with the Minuanos from the Parana, and were 
thus enabled to continue a guerilla warfare which Azara 
declared had cost the Spaniards more blood than the 
conquest of Mexico and Peru. They were finally van- 
quished and all but exterminated in 1831, when a few 
of the survivors were sold to an itinerant showman, and 
exhibited like wild beasts in European menageries. The 
last full-blood Charrua, one of these captives, is stated 
to have died in a Paris hospital towards the middle of 
the nineteenth century. It is, however, asserted by M. 
de Saint Adolphe, that at an early date some of their 
bands, harassed by the Paulistas, who enslaved all they 
could lay hands on, took refuge in the forests of South 
Brazil, " where a few scattered groups are still met." ^ 



The Gauchos and Uruguayans 

In any case there would appear to be a strain of 
Charrua blood in the Uruguayan Gauchos, if not in 
many of the Uruguayans themselves. Thus might be 
1 Op. cit. vol. i. p. 272. 



URUGUAY 431 

explained their great physical strength, their too often 
misapplied energy, and especially the almost incredible 
cruelty and ferocity displayed first in the war of inde- 
pendence, and afterwards during the interminable politi- 
cal conflicts of the Color ados and BUmcos, " Eeds and 
AVhites." On the left bank of the Uruguay, between 
Paysandu and Salto, travellers notice a conspicuous bluff 
or headland called the Mesa de Artigas, and are told 
that it is so named from General Artigas, " Founder of 
the Uruguayan Nation," who, in 1814, during the war 
of independence had his captives sewn up in ox-hides 
and rolled down the cliff side at this spot into the 
swirling stream below. Afterwards this inborn spirit 
of savagery was fomented not only by the civil strife 
and wars with Brazil and Argentina, but also by the 
meat industry, which has transformed the whole land to 
a huge shaml)]es, " making the air hot and heavy with 
the smell of blood, and uien callously unconcerned at its 
sight. One of the ugliest traits of the uneducated 
native of these countries is his perfect indifference to 
the sufferings of the brute creation ; his comparative 
disregard of human life is, with such a training, not 
unintelligible." ^ Nevertheless, with the cessation of the 
aimless faction fights an improvment has set in ; the 
people have acquired more restful habits, and even in 
]\Ionte Video, centre of countless political disturbances, 
observers already notice a less restless and more dignified 
bearing in the upper classes. 



Topography — Historic Retrospect 

In Uruguay nearly all the groups of population 
except Monte Video and one or two other seaports or 
1 Eumbokl, p. 153, 



432 



CO.MPEXDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TltAVEL 



mining-stations are directly connected with the meat 
industry. Hence they present the aspect rather of huge 
factories of a very rough and even repulsive character 
than of towns in the ordinary sense of the term. Hence 
also most of these places — Fray Bentos, Mercedes, 
Paysandu, Salto — are situated either on the Uruguay or 
on the navigable parts of the Eio Xegro, while the 



i 




MONTE VIDEO. 



interior, l)eing mostly given up to stock-breeding, is 
almost destitute of large towns. In the whole country 
there are scarcely a dozen places with over 5000 in- 
ha1:)itants, as shown in the subjoined table, where the 
populations are estimated for the year 1898 : — 



Monte Video 


. 252,000 


Villa de Melo . 


8,000 


Paysandu 


26,000 


Rocha 


.8,000 


Saito 


15,000 


Santa Lucia 


7.000 


Mercedes . 


11,000 


Fray Bentos 


7,000 


San Jose . 


10,000 


Maldonado 


6,000 



UKUGUAY 433 

Monte Video, which for a time gave its name to the 
republic of which it is the capital, is of relatively recent 
origin, yet already one of the great cities of the Southern 
Continent, with a population (1899) of over a quarter 
of a million, or nearly one-third of all the inhabitants 
of the State. Its convenient position near the entrance 
of the Plate estuary explains a commercial prosperity 
which could be arrested neither by political troubles, nor 
epidemics, nor sieges, one of which, lasting for nearly 
ten years (1842-51), has earned for Monte Video the 
title of the " Xew Troy." 

The history of this place is the history of the Bancla 
Oriental, the name by which the Uruguay lands were 
formerly known, and are still often called by the sur- 
rounding peoples. The expression, meaning " East Side," 
has reference to the position of this region east of the 
Eio Uruguay relatively to the Band a Occidental, " West 
Side," that is the Argentine lands proper, on the opposite 
side of the river. But owing to the determined hostility 
of the warlike Charrua aborigines, the Banda Oriental 
remained unsettled till the year 1680, when the Portu- 
guese founded the military station of Colonia (Colonia-do- 
Santissimo-Sacramento) opposite Buenos Ayres, with the 
view of rounding off their southern possessions by the 
annexation of the Estado Cisplatino, as they called this 
region. The very next year the place was seized by a 
Spanish expedition from Buenos Ayres, and all the 
settlers — men, women and children — put to the sword. 
From that time till the Eevolution the Banda Oriental 
continued to be hotly contested by the two rival powers, 
and Colonia was not finally abandoned by Brazil till 
1827, when it was occupied by the Monte Yideans. 

Monte Video itself had been founded in 1726 by 
the Spaniards for the avowed object of outflanking the 
VOL. I 2 F 



URUGUAY 435 

Portuguese of Colonia, and remained little more than a 
military outpost of Buenos Ayres till the year 1778, 
when it entered on a period of great commercial develop- 
ment as a free port, thanks especially to the abolition 
of the commercial monopoly of Cadiz. Settlers were 
now attracted from all quarters, and by the close of the 
eighteenth century Monte Video had become the largest 
trading-place in South America. 

Then ensued over half a century of colonial and 
foreign wars, the capture of the city in 1807 by the 
English, who, however, were obliged to withdraw after 
the defeat of General Whitelock at Buenos Ayres ; the 
expulsion of the Spaniards in 1815 ; the occupation of 
the place by the Portuguese in 1817, followed by the 
incorporation of Cisplatina in the Brazilian Empire 
(1824); the overthrow of the imperialists (1827), and 
the recognition of the independence of Uruguay both by 
the Brazilians and Argentines by the treaty of Eio de 
Janeiro (August 1828). 

But this treaty, brought about by the intervention 
of England, was displeasing to the Argentines, who had 
always looked on the Banda Oriental as belonging 
politically to the Plate domain, and had co-operated in 
the expulsion of the Brazilians, not in order to establish 
its autonomy, but to effect its reunion with the Con- 
federacy. On the accession of Eosas to power Monte 
Video became the refuge of those opposed to the tyrant's 
oppressive rule, and hostilities were precipitated Ijetween 
the two States when Uruguay espoused the cause of 
personal liljerty, and proclaimed the free navigation of 
the Argentine waters. Aided by the Italian volunteers 
under Garibaldi, and Ijy the British and French fleets 
in the estuary, the " New Troy " successfully held out 
against the Buenos Ayres forces under General Oribe. 



•436 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

But the conclusion of peace in 1853 brought little rest 
to the country, which for a time formed one of the three 
allies in the war against Paraguay (18 65-70), and has 
continued to be torn by party strife down to the present 
time. So recently as August 25, 1897, President Borda, 
a " Ked," was assassinated by Arredondo, a " White," in 
the streets of Monte Video, and since then there have 
been a cowp cVitat, disturbances in the provinces and a 
military revolt in the capital, where a state of siege was 
declared and British marines landed to protect the 
Consulate in July 1898. Amnesties have since been 
granted to the civil and military ringleaders, and in 
1899 order had been generally restored throughout the 
republic. 

Monte Video itself has suffered much less from these 
convulsions than might ba supposed. Its trade, wealth, 
and population continue steadily to increase, and it is 
at present really a tine city, presenting an imposing 
appearance both from the water and from the crest of 
the neighbouring Cerro, that is the " Green Hill," nearly 
500 feet high, from which it takes its name. There is 
a large cathedral in poor style, but also a beautiful 
church of the Immaculate Conception, and several of 
the public buildings — Exchange, Custom House, Post 
Office, Law Courts, and University — have some good 
architectural features. 

Unfortunately the harbour or roadstead is both 
shallow and exposed to the full fury of the south-eastern 
trade -winds. Some improvements have, however, been 
lately carried out, including piers, wharves, repairing 
docks, and the removal of the quarantine station to 
Flores Island twelve miles off the coast. But the plans 
presented by an English engineer for the enlargement of 
the port by the construction of a breakwater, docks, and 



URUGUAY 437 

other harbour works at a cost of £3,000,000, are for 
the present beyond the resources of the State. Water, 
sufficient for present requirements, is brought in pipes 
from the Kio Santa Lucia, a headstream of the San 
Juan, a distance of 36 miles, and tramways are laid 
down on all the thoroughfares, which run in all directions 
to the suburbs, and are disposed in the usual chessboard 
fashion. The government buildings, however, are erected 
diagonally across the line of streets, thus appearing to 
obstruct the public ways " in a manner that by local 
cynics is said to be emblematical of the spirit in which 
business is sometimes conducted within their walls." ^ 

At the entrance of the Plate estuary the little port 
of Maldonado gives access to the town of Minas, so called 
because it is the centre of a mineral district, where the 
auriferous quartz veins are worked by a few industrious 
gold-hunters, but yield poor returns. Being sheltered 
from the east winds by a projecting headland, Maldonado 
affords safer anchorage than Monte Video, but stands too 
far apart from the great ocean highways to attract much 
shipping. Of the vessels belonging to some twenty 
Atlantic steamship companies, which call regularly at 
Monte Video, scarcely half-a-dozen find it worth their 
while to turn aside now and then and visit Maldonado. 

iSTorth of Maldonado the marshy shores of the Atlantic 
and the Merim lagoon are scarcely inhabitable ; and 
here the only places of note are Rocha, near Cape Santa 
Maria ; Nico Perez, terminus of the railway, which is 
eventually to connect the Capital with Eio Grande do 
Sul ; and Artigas, near the mouth of the frontier Eio 
Jaguarao, which perpetuates the memory of tlie revolu- 
tionary hero, whose exploits have already been referred to. 

Of the desolate and dangerous seaboard between 

^ R. Crawford, op. cit. p. 18. 



438 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Maldonado and the Brazilian frontier a vivid picture is 
given by Mr. Knight : " The climate, the colour of the 
clear sky, and the aspect of the vegetation showed us 
that we had indeed left the tropics. Very different all 
appeared after torrid Eio, one thousand miles to the 
northward. It was a low shore, with sandy dunes and 
hills of no great altitude in the background ; a desert- 
looking country where thistles and aloes seemed especially 
to thrive. Of ill repute, too, is all this wild coast from 
here to the Brazilian frontier, and a terror to mariners. 
The currents of the ocean are powerful and inconstant ; 
there are few landmarks, and disasters to vessels are 
frequent. On the shore among the surf one can perceive 
the skeletons of many ill-fated ships, as one coasts along 
the dreary sand-banks. The only inhabitants are wild 
G-auchos, professional and skilful wreckers when not 
employed in ravaging their native country, under the 
banner of one or other of those rival guerilla chieftains 
who are ever contesting who shall next be the chief 
magistrate of revolutionary Uruguay" {op. cit. vol. i. p. 99). 

Between Monte Video and the Uruguay estuary the 
only noteworthy place is the old Portuguese settlement 
of Colonia, which stands at the mouth of the little Eio 
Martin Chico, where De Solis was cut off by the 
Charruas. In the estuary, where it narrows to about a 
mile, the port of Higueritas has the advantage of a well- 
sheltered harbour facing the mouth of the Parana Guazu 
(" Great Parana "), that is, the main branch of the Parana 
delta. 

At the head of the estuary, where the Uruguay is 
joined by the Ptio Negro, is the old station of Soriano, 
which dates from the year 1624, and was here founded 
to protect the Ghana natives from their hereditary foes, 
the Charrua Indians (see above). The Chanas appear 



URUGUAY 439 

to have already been evangelised at this time, and the 
ruins are still shown of the church built for them by 
the Jesuits. Fray Bentos, on the site of another old 
mission in the same district a short distance north of 
Soriano, has become one of the most flourishing centres 
of the meat business in the world. The factory founded 
herein 1863 for the preparation of " Liebig's Extract" 
has grown into a small town, employing over 2000 hands, 
and at times treating the cattle drawn from all the 
surrounding districts at the rate of about 1000a day. 

Higher up follow the two other great establishments 
of Paysandu and Salto, both devoted exclusively to the 
meat-preserving business. • Paysandu, on the bluff nearly 
opposite the Argentine town of Colon, had also a religi- 
ous origin, having been founded as a missionary station 
by the " Padre Sandu " in 1772. But the meek Guarani 
neophytes have long been replaced by lusty Gaucho 
drovers and slaughterers, and although destroyed by the 
Brazilians in 1864, the "city of tongues" is already, 
next to the capital, the largest place in the republic. 

Up to this point the river is accessible to vessels of 
from 500 to 600 tons burden, and Paysandu also enjoys 
the advantage of railway communication both with the 
capital by a junction with the central line at Paso de los 
Toros, and by the Midland line with Salto, wdiich stands 
at the head of the deep sea navigation about 90 miles 
higher up. Its speciality is the ox-tongue preserving 
business, which is largely in the hands of British 
capitalists. But it is a mistake to suppose that all the 
" Paysandu tongues " exported to England are tinned in 
this place. Of over half a million forwarded by the 
leading English firm scarcely a tenth part are cured at 
Paysandu, though all are shipped at this riverside port. 
" Where the cattle are slaughtered, there must the 



440 COMPEXDIU.M OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

tongues be preserved. Thej cannot be carried about in 
a hot sub-tropical climate before they are tinned, especi- 
ally as it is in summer that the saladeros (curers) work, 
when the cattle are in prime condition after feeding on 
the spring herbage." ^ 

To British enterprise Salto also owes its prosperity, 
and the neighbouring Rio Daiman and the Cuchilla del 
Dainian are named from the English pioneer, Mr. Day- 
man, whose extensive ranchos line the banks of the main 
stream, and stretch inland towards the Cuchillo de Haedo. 
As a riverside port Salto dates only from the year 1 8 1 "7, 
although long before that time there was a small settle- 
ment just below the Falls from which it takes its name. 
Since the opening of the railway, by which it communi- 
cates through Paysandu and Durazno, its progress has 
been continuous, and at present it ranks as the third 
place in the republic, practically forming a single city 
with Concordia on the opposite (Argentine) side of the 
Uruguay. 

Eailway Enterprise 

Since 1869, when the first short coast line was 
opened, railway enterprise has made considerable pro- 
gress, especially considering the disturbed state of the 
country. In 1899 over 1000 miles had been completed 
and 200 miles were under construction. The central 
system, having its terminus at Monte Video, runs 
for 130 miles north to Durazno on the Eio Yi, with a 
branch 20 miles Ions; connecting the Eio Santa Lucia 
with San Jose. From Durazno it extends for nearly 200 
miles north-westwards to Paysandu and Salto, crossing 
the Eio Xegro at Paso de los Toros, and ascending the 
Uruguay for 110 miles beyond Salto in the direction of 

^ Zephyrus, p. 168. 



UKUGUAY 441 

Santa Eosa and the Brazilian frontier. A beginning lias 
been made with another line also intended to connect the 
capital with the north-east frontier of Brazil at Jaguarao ; 
but of this system only the first short section from 
]\Ionte Video to Pando has been completed. 



Resources — The Meat Industries 

In Uruguay husbandry in the strict sense of the term 
is confined almost exclusively to the three southern 
departments of Canelones, San Jose, and Colonia, which 
extend along the Plate estuary from Maldonado to the 
Uruguay. Here the plough is everywhere steadily, and 
in some places rapidly, encroaching on the grazing-grounds, 
and the area under tillage increased from 430,000 acres 
in 1888 to over 700,000 in 1897. The chief crops are 
wheat and maize, of which the estimated yield exceeded 
300,000 and 160,000 tons respectively in 1898. 
Tobacco, the olive, vine, and fruits are also successfully 
cultivated, and the pomegranates of the Monte Video 
district have acquired a widespread celebrity. 

But all this is as nothing compared with stock-breed- 
ing, and the industries directly associated with the pre- 
paration of animal products, such as jerked beef, frozen 
meat, tinned tongues, beef extracts, hides, skins, tallow, and 
wool. These must long continue to be the main resources 
of the country, although their development is still re- 
tarded both by the fluctuating demand of the European 
markets, and by the lack of good communications with 
the rich pasture-lands of the interior. In 1898 the live 
stock comprised nearly 17,000,000 sheep, 6,000,000 
horned cattle, and 420,000 horses and mules, valued at 
about £16,000,000, exclusive of the wool clip, which often 
exceeds 30,000 tons. In the same year the total exports 



442 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

of all animal products exceeded £5,500,000, besides live 
animals £160,000, while all the other exports (wheat, 
minerals, rubber) were estimated at less than £320,000. 
In the absence of any other industries all manufactured 
goods have to be imported, chiefly from Great Britain, 
which takes the leading place in the international ex- 
changes ; while its exports to, greatly exceed its imports 
from, Uruguay. In 1896 these exports (cotton and woollen 
fabrics, metal-wares, coal, etc.) exceeded £1,434,000, 
while the imports (hides, wool, meat extracts, tinned 
meat, rubber) fell below £317,000. 

Of the jerked beef (charqui, pronounced charki), which 
is so widely consumed by nearly all classes in South 
America, immense quantities are prepared in the Uruguayan 
meat factories. When properly cured, carefully preserved, 
and skilfully cooked, it may be made palatable ; but these 
conditions are rarely fulfilled, and as a rule strangers do 
not find jerked meat a savoury article of food. " Charki," 
writes Mr. Knight, " is merely beef cut into long thin 
strips and dried in the sun ; when fresh it is not bad, 
but it rarely is fresh ; and after these lean shreds have 
been hanging outside a rancho in the hot, dusty air, they 
form anything but a luxurious diet. The charki then 
Ijecomes so much third-rate leather ; all the juices have 
been completely dried out of it, and the grilling of 
it on an asador over a wood fire does not tend to 
soften it. The toughness that beef thus treated can 
acquire is a thing to be experienced not told " (vol. i. 
p. 222). 

In 1895 this staple diet of whole populations was 
exported from Uruguay to all the surrounding lands to 
the estimated value of nearly £1,000,000. As the 
supply is practically unlimited, while the demand must 
increase with the growth of population in Argentina and 



UKUGUAY 448 

the south Brazilian provinces, political economists are 
already looking to the development of this trade as a 
means of reducing the heavy national liabilities, which 
were increased by £1,500,000 in 1899, and now exceed 
£25,600,000. 



Government — Education — Finance 

Soon after the establishment of its political independ- 
ence, a Constitution was framed for the little republic 
of Uruguay which dates from the year 1830, and is 
comprehensive enough for the good government of 
a great empire. At that time the population of the 
whole country, debased by years of strife and blood- 
shed, fell short of 80,000 ; but the fundamental 
charter of rights reads as if. addressed to many millions 
of sober and enlightened citizens. The legislative 
functions are entrusted to a Parliament with an Upper 
and a Lower House ; the executive to a President chosen 
for four years ; the administration of justice to a High 
Court, with secondary tribunals, and all kinds of provisions 
against malversation and venality. Guarantees are also 
devised against hasty legislation and premature reforms, 
and no revision of the organic articles of the Constitution 
until it has been considered by three sessions of l:)oth 
Houses. 

By the terms of this charter, which has never been 
either revoked or respected, never understood by a tithe 
of the people in whose interests it was framed, the 
annual parliamentary session extends from February to 
July, and during the adjournment a permanent com- 
mittee of two senators and five members of the Lower 
House assume, not only the general control of affairs, but 
also the legislative power itself. The senators, returned 



444 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

for six years and one-third retiring every two years, are 
chosen by an Electoral College, one for each department, 
the College being elected ' by popular suffrage. The 
members of the Lower House are also chosen by the 
people in the proportion of one for every 3000 male 
adults who can read and write. A council of five 
ministers (Interior, Foreign Afftxirs, Finance, War 
and Marine, Education and Public Works) assists 
the President in the exercise of his executive 
functions. 

Although the Eoman Catholic is recognised as the 
State religion, all other creeds enjoy complete toleration 
both in principle and practice. Protestants are relatively 
numerous, and in Monte Video alone the different sects 
were estimated at over 12,000 in 1896, besides 25,000 
" not declared." 

Primary instruction is obligatory, and in 1897 the 
attendance at the public, elementary, and private 
schools exceeded 73,000. Higher education is provided 
for by normal schools, a school of arts and trades 
supported by the State and attended by 200 free 
pupils, and a university at Monte Video with 600 
students in 1897. In the same year there were 
altogether one school for every 897 inhabitants, one 
teacher for every 411 inhabitants, and one pupil for 
every 11 inhabitants. 

The land forces comprise a standing army of about 
3500, a national guard of some 20,000 and over 3000 
armed police. There are also three or four gunboats 
with a complement of nearly 200 officers and men. All 
these forces are maintained at a charge of about 
£400,000 out of a yearly revenue averaging a little over 
£3,000,000. Another heavy charge on the public funds 
are the pensions, which are granted for services rendered, 



. i 



URUGUAY 445 

not to tlie State, but to the successful leaders of the 
different factions, and in 1898 exceeded £263,000. 
Thus nearly one-fourth of the State revenues is wasted 
either on useless armaments or professional politicians, 
while the interest on the public debt absurbs over a 
third (£1,130.000 in 1898). 



CHAP TEE XIII 

PARAGUAY 

Boundaries, Extent, Population — Physical Features — Hydrography — 
The Paraguay River and its Affluents — The Upper and Middle Parana 
Basin — Climate — Flora and Vegetable Resources — Fauna — Stock- 
breeding — Inhabitants — ThePa}'aguas — The Guarani and the Missions 
— The Paraguayans — Topography — Historic Retrospect — Administra- 
tion. 

Boundaries, Extent, Population 

Xamed from the great river, which for about 200 
rniles forms its western frontier towards Argentina, 
Paraguay is sometimes rather inaccurately called the 
" Mesopotamia of South America." The expression 
suggests the popular but erroneous idea that this State 
lies entirely or mainly within the space enclosed west, 
east, and south by the Parana and the Paraguay converg- 
ing at Las Tres Bocas. But such is far from Ijeing the 
case, and in point of fact the republic is not merely 
skirted but intersected by the Paraguay for a distance 
of 250 miles between the Apa and Pilcomayo confluences. 
Moreover, for another stretch of nearly 200 miles — from 
the Laguna de la Bahia Xegra to the mouth of the Apa 
— the Paraguay flows between Brazil on the east and 
Bolivia on the west side, so that here there is no 
question of a Mesopotamia at all. The true South 



PARAGUAY 447 

American Mesopotamia lies farther soutli, where the 
Argentine provinces of Misiones, Corrientes, and Entre 
Eios are really enclosed by the two rivers Parana and 
Uruguay. 

That section of Paraguay which lies to the west of 
the Eio Paraguay, and is called Paraguay Occidental, 
comprises the north-east portion of Gran Chaco, whose 
frontiers towards Bolivia and Argentina have been 
described in previous chapters. The rest of the State, 
that is, Paraguay Oriental, does to some extent form a 
Mesopotamic region, because the southern districts are 
bordered west, south, and east by the two great arteries 
as far north on the east side as the Guayra Falls of the 
Parana in 24° S. lat. Here the conterminous States are 
Argentina up to the Victoria Falls, where the same river 
is joined on its left bank by the Eio I-Guazu, and Brazil 
thence to the Guayra Falls. 

Brazil is also the conterminous State along the 
north - east and north frontiers, where the boundary, 
as determined by the International Commission of 
1871-73, coincides with the crests of the Mbaracayu 
and Amambay ranges from the Parana to the source 
of the Eio Estrella, and then follows that river and 
the Eio Apa, as its lower course is called, to its 
junction with the Paraguay at Fuerte del Apa in 
22° 5 S. lat. All these frontiers appear to have 
been generally accepted by the interested States, so that 
Paraguay, like Uruguay, is no longer troubled with 
boundary questions. 

Although the smallest but one of the South American 
republics, Paraguay covers none the less a considerable 
area, estimated at nearly 98,000 square miles, that is, 
the collective area of England, Scotland, and Wales, with 
10,000 square miles to spare. But the population, 



448 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



reduced from about 1,340,000^ to little over 200,000 
after the terrible war of 1865-70, was still officially 
estimated in 1897 at scarcely more than 730,000. 
These are classed as wild Indians, chiefly in western 
Paraguay ; civilised Indians, chiefly in eastern Paraguay ; 
and whites, mainly Hispano-Guarani half-castes, speaking 
both Guarani (the lengua general) and Spanish, besides 
recent immigrants from the surrounding States and from 
Europe, as in the subjoined table : — 



Hispano-Guarani (Paraguayans proper) 
Wild Indians, mostly in Gran Chaco . 
Civilised Indians,, mostly in the Parana districts 
Settlers from Argentina 
,, Italy 

,, ,, Germany 

,, ,. Brazil 

,, ,, Switzerland 

,, ,, Grent Britaii 
Sundries . 



Total (1897) 



590,000 

70,000 

60,000 

5,500 

2,500 

800 

700 

500 

200 

100 

'30,300 



Physical Features 

The eastern section of the republic, forming a tri- 
angular space of over 40,000 square miles between the 
rivers Paraguay and Pilcomayo, with its apex at the con- 
fluence and base coinciding with the conventional 
boundary line towards Bolivia, constitutes the north- 
eastern corner of Gran Chaco, and everywhere presents 
the same geological conformation and general aspect as 
the rest of that region. It is an almost level low-lying 
tract, which was formerly flooded by the Pampean Sea, 

^ This somewhat vague estimate is, however, reduced to about 800,000 
by Dr. E. de Bourgade La Dardye, who calculates that as many as three- 
fourths of the nation perished in the war, leaving an approximate popula- 
tion of 250,000 for the year 1872 {Paraguay, Ravenstein's English ed., 
p. 105). 



PARAGUAY 449 

and is still exposed to vast periodical inundations, thus 
presenting the appearance of a land in process of forma- 
tion. Standing at a mean altitude of less than 500 feet, 
with a scarcely perceptible southerly tilt, the soil is but 
partly relieved of its superabundant moisture mainly by 
evaporation, and the water lodging in the shallow 
depressions is so charged with salt as to be scarcely 
potable. During the floods these depressions, as well 
as the sluggish streams themselves, become merged in a 
continuous watery expanse, which thus intermittently 
revives the aspect of the old marine basin, and after its 
subsidence leaves the surface saturated and malarious. 

Beyond the Paraguay, which is a physical as well as 
a political divide, the land rises to a hilly plateau standing 
at a moderate elevation of about 600 feet, and intersected 
diagonally from north-east to south-west by the broken 
sections of a very old mountain range. Under the 
various designations of JJrucxdy, Caa-Guazu and Villa 
Rica, this range forms a southern continuation of the 
Brazilian Serra d'Amamhay, and like it everywhere serves 
as the water-parting between the Parana and Paraguay 
basins. It enters Paraguay territory at the point where 
the Amambay chain bends sharply round from south to 
east, and continues under the name of the Serra de 
Mharacayu in this direction along the 24th parallel to 
the right bank of the Parana, and deflects that river from 
west to south at the Guayra Falls. At its southern 
extremity the Villa Eica section again strikes the Parana 
at a point below Villa Encarnacion, where are developed 
the lacyreta and Apipe falls and rapids. 

Although dignified with the title of " Cordilleras," 
the Paraguayan sections of the system nowhere attain an 
altitude of over 2000 feet, and their true character of 
rounded and densely -wooded hills is betrayed by the 

VOL. I 2 G 



450 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGHAPHY AND TRAVEL 

local expression Sierra de los Mantes, that is, " Forest 
Kange." In fact the Urucuty and Caa-Guazu sections 
traverse the densely -wooded north-eastern and central 
districts, vi^here the difficulties of the communications 
between the yerhales {mate tea plantations) on Ijoth sides 
of the chain are caused, not by the height or rugged 
character of the hills, but by the tangled masses of 
tropical vegetation by which they are overgrown. Even 
the frontier ranges themselves — Amambay and Mbaracayu 
—have a mean height of probably less than 3000 feet, 
and are easily crossed by hunters, explorers, and mate 
gatherers about the Brazilo-Paraguay borderlands. Yet, 
like the other Brazilian mountain systems, of which they 
are south-western offshoots, all these now degraded ridges 
have undergone a tremendous amount of weathering and 
denudation. " Long before the mighty upheaval of the 
great Cordillera these very hills sustained the continent 
of [South] America, and protected its eastern plateaux 
from the incursions of the sea. The action of the climate 
has wrought their destruction ; torrents, unceasing and 
inexhaustible, debased their topmost crests, filled up their 
crevices, and little by little the unremitted work of 
erosion denuded the mountain-flanks of the granite by 
which they were upheld. Portion after portion has 
crumbled away, and the fragments have had an enormous 
share in filling up the vast estuaries which indented the 
American coast-line at the Tertiary era. It was probably 
the Pliocene period [late Tertiary] that witnessed in their 
greatest intensity the phenomena that gave the continent 
its present configuration. All the eastern part of the land 
remained upheaved, while the western zone sank down to 
a considerable depth, allowing the Pliocene [Pampean] 
sea to penetrate to the very heart of America." ^ 
1 La Dardye, p. 9. 



PARAGUAY 451 

Xo doubt the volcanic phenomena, which accompanied 
the folding and upheaval of the Andean system, extended 
eastwards to the Paraguayan uplands. Thus may be 
explained the presence of several igneous cones, such as 
the Cerro Tiiciimhu close to Asuncion, and the Acay 
heights (2000 feet) near the head of the Eio Mbuarapey, 
a tributary of the Tibicuary. Here are numerous mineral 
springs, and earthquakes are of frequent occurrence in 
the district. Elsewhere extensive tracts are covered to 
depths of several feet and even yards with a red earth 
which, like that of the Brazilian province of S. Paulo, is 
extremely fertile and well suited for tobacco culture. 

Eecent scientiiic research has determined in Paraguay 
two distinct geological regions — the north, which as far 
as about 22° S. lat. is covered with limestones, and the 
south, where sandstone formations prevail. Such a con- 
stitution is not favourable to the presence of the precious 
metals ; but the whole country may be described as one 
vast mass of ironstone and manganese, iron abounding 
especially in the southern, and marble in the northern 
area. Pyrites occur in considerable quantities ; kaolin 
has been discovered in many districts ; copper lodes are 
also spoken of, and coal, hitherto supposed to be absent, 
is now believed to be embedded in the southern sandstone 
rocks, but apparently at some depth below the surface. 

Hydrography— The Paraguay River and its Affluents 

While Western Paraguay belongs entirely to the Eio 
Paraguay basin, the eastern section drains partly to that 
river and partly to the Parana. But the already 
described divide between the two main streams lies far 
to the south-east, so that only a relatively small section 
of the whole territory, probably not more than 20,000 



452 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

square miles, is comprised within the Parana basin. 
Moreover, the Parana itself is everywhere only a frontier 
river, whereas for 250 miles of its course the Paraguay 
traverses the central and by far the most thickly peopled 
districts of the republic. When it is further considered 
that at the confluence in the south-west corner of the 
State it is lost in the Parana, while only comparatively 
insignificant parts of Brazil and Bolivia are comprised in 
its narrow and less important upper basin, one feels less 
surprise at the pretentions of former Paraguayan rulers, 
who claimed the right to exercise exclusive control over 
this great waterway. 

In some respects the Paraguay bears the same rela- 
tion to the Parana that the Mississippi does to the 
Missouri, but with this difference, that in the northern 
system the smaller of the two branches retains its name 
from its source to the delta, whereas in the south the 
smaller is absorbed in the larger at the confluence. Why 
this should be so is not quite evident, seeing that the 
Paraguay, like the Mississippi, follows the meridional 
line from north to south, which in both cases seems to 
be the natural direction of the main fluvial axis. Some 
eminent geographers have, in fact, always held that the 
united stream below the confluence should have kept the 
name of the Paraguay, the more so since the natural 
lower course of the Parana would seem to be the Uruguay, 
from which it is deflected abruptly westwards only by 
a projecting offshoot of the Sierra de los Misioues above 
Villa Encarnacion. But all such considerations were 
outweighed by the much larger size of the Parana, that 
is, the " Eiver " in a pre-eminent sense. Hence the great 
north-eastern branch, whose volume is often ten times 
larger than that of the Paraguay at the confluence, retains 
its name for the rest of its course to the Plate estuary. 



PARAGUAY 453 

The Paraguay rises about 1000 feet above sea-level 
on the Matto Grosso plateau, which forms the water- 
parting between the Amazon and Parana basins. At 
As sete lagoas, perhaps its farthest source (in 14° 35' S. 
lat. and 56° 10' W.), the divide is so contracted that 
the head-waters of the Tapajos affluent of the Amazons 
seem to intermingle, or at least to overlap those of the 
Paraguay in the Diamantina district above Cuyaba. The 
Arinos, a branch of the Tapajos, is even said to flow from 
the same lagoons as the Paraguay, while a head-stream of 
the Jauru affluent has actually been connected by a 
canal half-a-mile long with the Alegre, which joins the 
Guapore, or upper course of the Madeira a little south of 
Matto Grosso. 

Soon after escaping from the hilly district of the 
sources, where it tumbles over a series of rapids with a 
total fall of nearly 400 feet, the Paraguay begins at 
once to flow in an almost level bed, with a tranquil uni- 
form current, and an incline of not more than 3 or 4 
inches per mile. In fact, from its junction with the S. 
LourenQO on its right bank to the Plate estuary, a dis- 
tance of over 2500 miles, the absolute incline is only 
about 600 feet, and is so uniformly distributed that the 
channel is nowhere obstructed by a single rapid, although 
the navigation is not considered quite safe until the 
somewhat dangerous reach at Los Arrecifes near the now 
ruined settlement of San Salvador has been passed. 
Hence the Paraguay is completely navigable from the 
Atlantic into the very heart of Brazil, and small steamers 
even ascend the S. LoureuQO to the mouth of the Hio 
Cuyciba, which leads to the town of the same name in 
the province of Matto Grosso. Such a fluvial regime is 
explained by the fact that throughout the greater part 
of its course the Paraguay traverses the level bed of the 



454 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

old Pampean Sea, traces of which may still be detected in 
the so-called " Laguna " de los Xarayes, a vast level plain 
which under several names {Laguna Mandiary, Laguna 
de Caceres, Gaiha, etc.) extends for 360 miles all the 
way from above the S. Lourenco to and beyond the con- 
fluence of the Tacuari and Miranda, which join the left 
bank near Coimbra. 

When the Spanish pioneers first penetrated to this 
region, they described it as a boundless lake — being 
probably flooded at the time as it still is periodically 
— and regarded it as the source of the Paraguay, invest- 
ing it with marvellous properties, and reporting that in 
the midst of these waters dwelt El Dorado, the ever- 
receding goal of all their early expeditions to the interior. 
The plain, which is skirted on its west side by the upper 
course of the Paraguay, has still its flooded inlets and 
hahias (" bays "), and these deeper parts are not only 
permanently submerged, but even here and there have a 
brackish taste, derived from the thick saline incrustations 
deposited by the old inland sea. 

The true character of the Xarayes region has been 
somewhat misunderstood, owing to the term " laguna," 
popularly applied to its different sections. It is neither 
a lagoon or shallow lake, nor yet a morass or marshy 
depression, but a true plain of vast extent, standing at 
almost a dead level, and in the dry season watered by 
numerous perennial streams, which during the floods, 
from about March to July, are merged in a single sheet 
of water stretching away in all directions beyond the 
horizon, and diversified by numerous low verdant islands, 
or solitary clumps of trees rising above the surface. 
After the subsidence, the watermarks of the recurrent 
inundations are plainly visible on the stems of these 
trees, which represent, not the scrubby vegetation of fens 



PARAGUAY 455 

or moorlands, but the vigorous arliorescent growths of a 
firm tropical soil. 

Below the Xarayes flats the Paraguay is joined on its 
right hank by the navigable Eios Tucabaca {Olinden) and 
Otvquis, and a little farther on by the Bahia Keyra, 
where begins that section of Gran Chaeo which is com- 
prised in Paraguay territory. Beyond this point the 
only important affluents on the right bank are the already 
described Pilcomayo and Bermejo. But about 190 miles 
below the Bahia Negra it receives on the left side the 
Rio Apa, forming the frontier towards Brazil, and from 
this point to the Parana confluence its course lies entirely 
within Paraguayan territory. Here its waters are swollen 
by several tributaries from the east, none of which 
possess much economic importance except the Aqvidahan, 
the Juji-iy, and the Tihucuary. The Aquidaban, which rises 
in the Amambay range above Punta Pona, flows mainly 
west to its junction with the main stream some 1 5 miles 
north of Concepcion. Although it sends down a large 
volume its rocky bed is so obstructed with rapids that 
the yerhateros, that is, the people engaged in collecting 
yerba-mate in the interior, have abandoned all efforts to 
utilise it for traffic. This turl^ulent stream flows through 
some magnificent woodlands, where trees 60 to 90 feet 
high and 20 feet in girth are quite common. 

But of all the Paraguayan rivers the most important 
is the Jujuy, which rises in the Cerro Noyuez, converging 
point of the three mountain ranges, and with its widely- 
ramifying branches drains nearly one-fourth of the whole 
territory. Many of its numerous affluents are navigable, 
and the main stream may be ascended for a considerable 
distance by boats of 40 tons. A few miles beyond the 
town of San Pedro the Jujuy falls into the Paraguay 
through two arms just above Barranqnerita, a military 



456 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TPvAVEL 

station where all steamers stop at present. The Jujuy, 
which was first thoroughly explored by La Dardye in 
1887, possesses great commercial value, and in its 
basin are situated some of the finest yerbales in the 
country. 

Below Asuncion the marshy region, which extends all 
the way to the Parana confluence, is traversed and partly 
drained by the Tibicuary, a sluggish meandering river 
which, after receiving the overflow of the large Laguna 
Y2Joa through the Bio Negro emissary, flows in a channel 
300 yards broad to the Paraguay some miles below Villa 
Franca. The Tibicuary, which also waters some rich 
mate forests, is formed by the junction of two consider- 
able head-streams, the Tibicuary -mini and the Tihicv.ary- 
guazu, which flow from the slopes of the Caa-Guazu and 
Villa Eica ranges, and unite in a single channel lielow 
the Cerro Santa Maria. 

Below the Tibicuary the main stream continues to 
flow with many windings in the normal direction of 
south by west, and after passing the bluff formerly 
crowned by the famous stronghold of Humaita, enters 
the Parana through three arms (the Tres Bocas) just 
above Corrientes. Here the Parana, coming from the 
east, may be said to usurp the bed of the Paraguay, and 
M. de Saint-Adolphe amongst others expresses his sur- 
prise that geographers should give the name of the 
Parana to its lower course, which continues to flow in 
the same southerly direction till it bends round to join 
the Uruguay at the head of the Plate estuary. 

But taking the section from the Tres Bocas to the 
Uruguay as the lower course of the Parana, such is the 
generally uniform character of the Paraguay branch that 
its three main sections have to be determined rather on 
political than on physical grounds. Thus, from its source 



PARAGUAY 457 

to the S. LourenQO confluence it lies entirely in Brazilian 
territory, and this section, where the incline is somewhat 
rapid above the Xarayes flats, may be taken as its true 
upper course. Then the middle course, where it forms 
the boundary between Brazil and Bolivia, will extend to 
the Bahia Negra, and the lower course from this point to 
the Parana, the main stream here flowing first between 
Paraguay and Argentina, and then altogether in Para- 
guayan territory. The total distance from its source to 
Corrientes is about 1000 miles, of which nearly 900 
miles are navigable for small craft throughout the year, 
and for large vessels at high water, when the Paraguay 
rises at times from 20 to 30 feet above its normal level. 



The Upper and Middle Parana Basin 

No difficulty is presented by the Parana branch, 
whose natural and political divisions are in complete 
harmony. Its upper course, formed by the junction of 
the Eios Grande and Faranahiha, terminates naturally 
at the Guayra Falls, and consequently belongs entirely 
to Brazil. From these Falls to the Paraguay confluence 
it flows as a frontier river first between Brazil and 
Paraguay and then between Paraguay and Argentina, 
and this clearly marked section is rightly regarded as its 
middle course from the strictly physical standpoint. 
Lastly, the elsewhere described lower course is an Argen- 
tine waterway throughout its whole length from the 
Paraguay confluence to the Plate estuary. What is 
remarkable about these three sections is that the first and 
third, flowing in deep and slightly inclined channels, are 
for the most part tranquil navigable streams, whereas the 
second, rushing in a rocky bed down a steep incline and 
over numerous reefs, rapids, and even falls, is practically 



458 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

useless for navigation, despite the enormous body of 
water it rolls down to the Pampean plains. 

This curious phenomenon of the great artery assum- 
ing somewhat the aspect of a mountain torrent, not in 
its upper valley but in its middle reaches, has been a 
main factor in determining the course of events in the 
southern continent since its occupation by the white 
man. The circumstance was taken advantage of by the 
Jesuits, who founded their chief missions in the region 
of the cataracts, where they hoped to enjoy that seclusion 
from the outer world which was needed for the peaceful 
development of their theocratic system of government. 
To the same cause is largely due the fact that Paraguay 
is now an independent Hispano-American State, instead 
of an obscure province of the Brazilian republic. The 
Paulistas and other early Portuguese pioneers, arrested 
by the almost impassable barrier of the iide Quedas 
(the " Seven Falls " of Guayra), turned their energies 
in other directions, and thus gave the first Spanish 
colonists time to secure a strong footing in the Paraguay 
basin above Corrientes. Hence it is that, when the 
Guarani congregations melted away, after the expulsion 
of the Jesuits, the Middle Parana region reverted to its 
primeval state of a silent wilderness, where the solitary 
traveller occasionally stumbles upon the pictui-esque ruins 
of some Christian church festooned with lianas, while all 
life and movement are now centred in the old Spanish 
settlements along the banks of the Lower Paraguay. 

Some 40 miles below the junction of its two head- 
streams, in 19° S. lat., the Upper Parana is precipitated 
a height of 15 to 20 feet over the Uruhwpunga Falls, 
which appear to be the only obstruction to its navigation 
above the Guayra Falls. Between these two points its 
current is swollen by a great number of tributaries, the 



PARAGUAY 459 

largest of which are the Tiet6 and the Paranapanema, 
which join the left bank from the province of S. Paulo. 
Despite its great length and volume, the Paranapanema, 
that is, the " Useless Kiver," is so obstructed by rocky 
ledges and rapids that it is quite useless for navigation. 
At the Salto Grande (" Great Falls ") a body of about 
1000 cubic feet per second tumbles from a height of 
over 30 feet into a narrow rocky gorge, beyond which 
occur several other cascades. 

Just above the G-uayra Falls the Parana expands 
into a large basin 4 or 5 miles wide, whence it issues in 
two branches which, like Niagara, enclose a large island, 
and then develop a number of separate swirling channels, 
which, after piercing the projecting spurs of the Sierra 
Mbaracayu, plunge from heights of 50 to 60 feet into a 
seething chasm of immense depth, but not more than 200 
feet wide. From the rushing channels the cataract takes 
its Portuguese name of the " Seven Falls " ; but the 
number is not to be taken too literally, as they vary with 
the seasons, while during the floods all are merged in a 
single stream. Then is presented the sublime spectacle 
of one of the mightiest rivers in the world precipitated 
bodily into a fathomless abyss, and La Dardye, to whom 
we owe the only accurate account of the Falls, may well 
ask whether they are equalled in size and grandeur even 
by Niagara itself 

At the Guayra Falls, which are so named from the 
old Jesuit station of La Guayra, the Parana strikes the 
Paraguayan frontier, and turning abruptly south enters 
on its middle course, where it is at first confined to a 
relatively narrow rocky bed. Throughout the whole of 
this section, about 400 miles in length, the main stream 
is joined on its right bank only by some comparatively 
small tributaries from Paraguay. Of these the largest 



460 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 



appears to be the Rio Felotas or laurel/, which rises at 
the Cerro Nogiiez close to the sources of the Jujuj', and 
after a course of about 70 miles, of which 20 are navi- 
gable, enters the Parana some 3 miles below the Guayra 
Falls. On the left side the chief atiluent is the I-Guazu, 
i.e. the " Great Eiver," which drains a considerable portion 
of the Brazilian provinces of Parana and Sante Catharina, 




VICTORIA FALLS OF THE I-GUAZU, 



and joins the Parana at the point where it leaves lirazil, 
and for the rest of its course to the Paraguay confluence 
forms the boundary between Paraguay and Argentina. 
It was along the valley of the I-Guazu, which rises as the 
Bio Grande do Curifiba on the slopes of the Coast Eange, 
that the famous adventurer Alvar Nunez (Calieza de 
Yaca) made his way in 1542 across the continent from 
the Atlantic to Asuncion on the Paraguay. About six 
miles al)ove its junction with the Parana, the T-Guazu 



PARAGUAY 461 

develops the Victoria Falls, which although inferior in 
volume are much higher, about 200 feet, than those of 
La Guayra. 

About 100 miles below the I-Guazu confluence, the 
Parana, still flowing south as if to join the Uruguay, is 
turned westwards to the Paraguay by the Sierra de los 
Misiones. Here the incline is still considerable, and the 
current rushes on with such velocity that in the course 
of ages it has cut its hard sandstone bed down to depths 
of 120 or 150 feet below the level of its rocky walls, thus 
excavating long gloomy gorges that have even been com- 
pared with the canons of the North American Colorado. 
Beyond the point where it seems to desert the valley of 
the Uruguay, the main stream does not reach the normal 
level of the Eio Paraguay until it has surmounted a long- 
series of rapids below Encarnacion, where it has to force 
its way through the southern spurs of the Villa Eica 
range, and where its channel is divided by the large 
islands of lacyreta and Apip4, surviving fragments of 
those very ancient mountains. Here at last the mighty 
Parana enlarges its borders, and flows — a calm majestic 
waterway, several thousand feet wide — through the vast 
marshy tract, where it usurps the bed of the Paraguay 
above Corrientes. 

This low-lying and almost perfectly level swampy 
region, which certainly formed part of the old Pampean 
sea, extends for a distance of over 120 miles on both 
sides of the Parana. Eemnants of the marine basin are 
the Ypoa and Camba lagoons on the north (Paraguayan) 
side, to which the remarkable Ihera lagoon corre- 
sponds on the opposite (Argentine) side. So slight is 
the incline in this extensive flooded depression of the 
" Clear- water," as the word has been interpreted, that the 
encfineers have been able to give the Ibera a double out- 



462 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

flow, north to the Middle Parana below the Apipe rapids, 
and through the Rios Batel and Corrients south to the 
Lower Parana above La Paz. Thus the vast Parana- 
Paraguayan hydrographic system is found to be, so to say, 
still in touch with the ancient inland sea at such distant 
points as the Ibera and the Xarayes lacustrine districts. 
The lower section, where the two head branches flow in 
a single channel from the Tres Bocas to the Plate estuary, 
is described in Chapter IX. 

Climate 

Lying between 22° and 28° S. lat., Paraguay is 
essentially a sub-tropical region, where the normal cli- 
matic conditions, as determined by latitude, are disturbed 
neither by marine influences nor by lofty mountain 
ranges or other local features. The land, however, is 
sheltered somewhat by the Brazilian uplands from the 
warm equatorial currents, while it is fully exposed to the 
refreshing south-western pamperos, hence enjoys on the 
whole a cooler and healthier climate than many regions 
lying between the same parallels. The four seasons are 
not sharply distinguished, and Dr. La Dardye divides the 
year into nine months of perpetual spring, and three 
summer months — December, January, and February — 
which, although undeniably hot, are less sultry and 
oppressive than in Venezuela and the Guianas. This 
agrees very well with the records of the mean annual 
temperature of Asuncion, about 250 feet above sea-level, 
which is a little over 72° F., rising to 80" in January 
and falling to 63° in June, although such extremes as 40° 
and 100° and even 104° have occasionally been observed. 

The country suffers more from droughts than from 
excessive moisture, because the precipitation is mostly 



PAKAGUAY 463 

confined to the three months of August, September, and 
October, when the total rainfall amounts to 4 6 inches, leav- 
ing very little for the rest of the year. Except small-pox, 
which has been much diminished since the introduction of 
vaccination, there are no epidemics, and endemic com- 
plaints are hardly known beyond the now almost unin- 
habited eastern districts, where the chucho, a somewhat 
virulent intermittent fever, is prevalent. On the whole 
Dr. La Dardye, who has given the subject special atten- 
tion, pronounces the climate " both temperate and healthy " 
even for " European immigrants observing hygienic 
rules" (op. cit. p. 73). 

Flora and Vegetable Resources 

Despite its relatively limited extent, Paraguay may 
claim to possess two distinct botanical zones, corresponding 
to the two sections of the country divided by its great 
waterway. Eastern Paraguay is still mainly covered 
with primeval subtropical and even tropical woodlands, 
with magnificent trees of great economic value, often 
matted together with flowering creepers. These wood- 
lands, however, are not continuous, but interrupted in 
many places by extensive open tracts under tall, tufted 
grasses, and by low hilly ridges overgrown with pindo 
and mbocaya palms. But the most characteristic as well 
as the most valuable plant is yerla-mate (" Paraguay 
tea "), which is here indigenous, although it ranges also 
beyond the Parana into the neighbouring provinces of 
Brazil. In the cultivated districts oranges, tobacco, 
sugar-cane, manioc, tomatoes, beans, and several cereals 
yield good returns. 

A great contrast to all this exuberance of vegetable 
growths is presented by that section of Gran Chaco 



•i64 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



which constitutes "Western Paraguay, and has mostly the 
aspect of swampy moorlands, diversified with dense 
quebracho forests {Loxopterygium Zorenzii) and palms, 
such as the Cocos yatais, growing openly rather than in 




PARAGUAY TEA. 



compact masses. Amongst the species which range also 
into Eastern Paraguay is the valuable quehracho Colorado, 
which is so heavy that it will not float, and for strength 
and durability is scarcely equalled by any European tree. 
Other useful trees and shrubs, of which as many as 



PARAGUAY 465 

3000 species were collected by M. Balanza in a limited 
area, are the dragon's blood {Croton succiruhus) ; several 
varieties of the bombax, which yields a vegetable silk ; 
the palo de rosa (rosewood) ; the incienso, i.e., the incense 
tree of the Jesuits ; the guava {Psidium microcarpurn) ; 
the mamon (Papaw-tree), and a large number of orchids, 
tlye-woods, and medicinal plants, many of which are un- 
known, or known only by name, in Europe. 

But of all the vegetable products of the country in- 
comparably the most important for its future development 
is the plant of the Ilex family (Ilex parag^uiyensis), which 
the Gruarani people call caa (whence the name of the 
Gaa-Guazu, central range), and the Spaniards yerla-viaU} 
and which yields the infusion generally known as 
" Jesuit " or " Paraguay tea." Although the plant is 
met also in parts of Argentina and of Brazil {herva-do- 
maU), it attains its greatest perfection in Paraguay, 
where it covers large tracts, the so-called yerljcdes, on 
both slopes of the central range. In the time of the 
Jesuits the plantations were carefully cultivated by pro- 
cesses which secured a never-failing supply of periodical 
crops. But since their expulsion the secret of their 
method has been lost, and at present there is no properly 
organised system of cultivation, the yerbales being worked 
in much the same manner as are the rubber-yielding 
plants, which grow^ wild in the Amazonian woodlands. 
Nevertheless the yield is steadily increasing to meet the 

•" From yerba, herb, and the Quichuan word ma-U, calabasli, the full 
expression being yerha del mat6, that is, the "calabash herb," being so 
called because the infusion is made with hot water in a calabash teapot, 
from which when cool it is sucked up through a tube. It should be noted 
that, despite its Spanish name, the plant is not a "herb," but a shrub or 
even a tree, as indicated by its native name, caa, wliich means "tree," in 
a pre-eminent sense. There are at least three varieties, one of which, in 
the Ygatima valley within the Brazilian frontier, attains a height of 25 or 
26 feet, with a girth of 3 or -4 fuet. 

VOL. I 2 H 



466 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPIIY AND TRAVEL 

constantly increasing demand for Paraguay tea, which' 
has become the favourite beverage not only in Paraguay 
itself, but also throughout Argentina and in many parts 
of Brazil. Thus the quantity of the leaf exported rose 
from about 5000 tons in 189 6 to nearly 7000 in 1898, 
the popularity of the drink being explained by its now 
admitted innnense superiority over tea, coffee, and coca as 
a tonic, and as a stimulant to the physical and mental 
powers, without causing any reaction or waste to the 
system. This conclusion is based, not so much on the 
scientific analysis of the properties of mate as on the 
experience of the multitudes who now prefer it to all 
other analogous drinks, even in those districts where 
excellent coffee and coca are procurable. Its consumption 
is still confined to South America. But when the Old 
World discovers that " yerba-mate is the cheapest, most 
wholesome, and tone-giving of beverages, then the ports 
of Europe will be thrown open to the trade, and its 
populations swell the demand for an article of diet that 
ranks among the very best." ^ 

Next to the yerbales in present importance and future 
promise are the naranjales, the " orange groves," some 
cultivated, some running wild all over tlie land, but all 
displaying marvellous vitality, and yielding, not periodical 
crops, but a continuous supply nearly all the year round, 
neither fruit nor blossom ever completely failing in a 
region of almost perpetual spring. So widespread is the 
shrub that La Dardye, while admitting the introduction 
of the sweet orange and the lemon by the Jesuits, has 
difficulty in believing that some varieties besides the 
ap4pu, an undoubtedly native species, are not indigenous. 
" Everywhere, on the banks of the rios, in the gorges of 
the far-off sierras, near the ranchos, round the estancias^ 

1 La Daidye, p. 22L 



PAEAGUAY 467 

in the solitude of the forests, the trees are seen with 
their golden fruit' and deep -green foliage, in rows, in 
terraces, in groves — everywhere, on mountains and on 
plains, they grow and break the blue horizon with their 
rounded outline, and it seems as if they must have 
flourished there from all antiquity" (p. 222). All are 
of prime quality, more fragrant and luscious than those 
of Valencia and Italy, while in hot weather the apepu is 
preferred because of its slightly acid flavour. During 
the five years' war most of the groves in the settled 
districts were fired or out -rooted. But such is the 
fecundity of the plant, springing up again wherever a 
pip is dropped from a parrot's beak or a leaf wafted on 
the breeze to some favourable site, that the ravages of 
warfare have to a large extent been already repaired. 
The amber and yellow fruits again lend their charm to 
the landscape, and twenty of the finest quality are cried 
for a penny in the streets of Villeta. After myriads had 
been consumed by the natives, or left to rot un gathered, 
enough still remained for exportation at this price to the 
value of £30,000 in the year 1898. Clearly orange- 
culture, also an heirloom of the Jesuits, has a great 
future for Paraguay, especially when taken in connection 
with the recent development of allied industries, such as 
the preparation of an excellent orange wine, quite free 
from the flavour of the fruit, and the extraction of citric 
acid, citrates of lime, orange - water, candied peel, and 
other products of the orange and citron plants in constant 
demand. 

That the Paraguayans, pre-eminently a nation of 
smokers, should also have their tobacco plantations is but 
natural, seeing that both soil and climate are well suited 
for the cultivation of this herb. Although little known 
in Europe, owing to the difficulty of securing a regular 



468 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

supply, the Paraguayan leaf is equal to the finest Havana, 
and the specimens shown at the Paris Exhibition of 1889 
were av^^arded a gold medal. It is grown exclusively in 
the red earth districts, the soil of which is of the same 
character as the red earth of Cuba, which produces the 
choice vuelta abajo variety. But at present the yield 
scarcely suffices to meet the demand of the local and 
Argentine markets, and in 1898 the amount exported 
fell short of 22,000 cwts., valued at nearly £120,000. 
With improved processes and more regular communica- 
tions, this industry would be capable of indefinite develop- 
ment. The extent to which the natives of both sexes 
and almost all ages indulge in the habit of smoking may 
be judged from the calculation which has been made, that 
the daily consumption of cigars averages about seven per 
head of the whole population. 



Fauna 

Of the large carnivora the puma is very rare, although 
common in Argentina, whereas both the jaguar and the 
tiger-cat {Felis Geoffroi) are met in all the wooded 
districts. During the great war the jaguars acquired a 
taste for human flesh from the bodies of the dead and 
even of the wounded left to die in the forests. But 
these " man-eaters " are now extinct, and at present the 
" American tiger " seldom attacks man except in self- 
defence. A more characteristic but less known animal is 
the agv.ara-guazu {Canis jubatus), a species of wild dog, 
or perhaps wolf, nearly three feet long, and so fierce and 
powerful that, according to the natives, it will not 
hesitate to attack the jaguar itself. It is of a tawny 
colour, with long hair, very large erect ears, long bushy 
tail like tliat of a fox, long black legs and a black stripe 



PARAGUAY 469 

down the back. It frequents the swampy districts, and 
hunts in small packs at night, making a peculiar hoarse 
bark, which is heard at a considerable distance, and pro- 
duces a depressing effect on benighted wayfarers. The 
marten family is represented by several species, such as 
the Parana otter {Lutra paroMensis) and the southern 
pole-cat {Mephitis patar/onium), locally called the zorino. 
Other members of the general South American fauna 
are the ant-bear, very large and even dangerous; the 
tapir, with a thick hide almost bullet-proof except in the 
forehead and behind the shoulder ; the peccary, numerous 
herds of which are sometimes met rushing along and 
sweeping everything before them ; several varieties of 
the armadillo, all edible, and one, the mulita {Praopus 
hyhridus), regarded by the Argentines as a choice delicacy ; 
lastly the web -footed capybari, of amphibious habits. 
There are also several kinds of deer, all called guazu 
(" great ") by the natives, but distinguished as guazu pyta, 
guazu vira, guazu pucu, etc. 

Of birds there is an endless variety, from the huge 
waders, such as the tuyuyu {Ciconia maguari), down to 
the tiniest humming-birds. Contrary to the general 
impression, many are distinguished as much by their 
melodious notes as by their gorgeous plumage. But the 
popular idea that lovely plumage is never, or rarely, 
associated with lovely music, has been sufficiently dispelled 
by the observations of Mr. W. H. Hudson, at least for 
the South American avifauna. 

All the rivers team with saurians of many species, the 
characteristic crocodile of the Parana being the yacari 
{Alligator sderops), which is sometimes 10 feet long, and 
very powerful, but less voracious and aggressive than 
those of the Amazon and Orinoco. The same remark 
applies to nearly all the members of the numerous snake 



470 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

family, which slink away at the slightest noise and never 
bite unless touched or trodden upon. Yet some of the 
Paraguayan species, such as the rattle-snake, the viper, 
and cobra, jaraca {Leucurus), and nacanina, are amongst 
the most venomous in the world. Exceptionally the 
little nandurU, which looks at a distance like a greenish- 
grey earth-worm, difficult to distinguish from the sur- 
rounding foliage, is also aggressive. When startled, 
instead of retreating, it springs up erect on its tail, 
vibrates its head, and immediately attacks, its bite lieing 
fatal in a few hours. 

On the other hand, the huge boas, strong enough to 
break a man's backbone, are singularly inoffensive, and 
will even abandon their prey if pricked with any sharp 
weapon. Far more dangerous and dreaded are the 
enormous water-snakes of the Murina tribe, locally called 
miboy-yagua (" serpent-dogs "). Some of these monsters 
are nearly 30 feet long, and so powerful that they upset 
canoes, and drag bathers under the water. The rivers 
infested by them swarm with many species of fishes, 
such as the dorado, the 'paca, surubi, and sahalo, which 
possess economic value, being not only edible but even 
prized for their delicate flavour. Others of coarser 
quality — the pcdomxta, armado, and hagre — are attracted 
in shoals to the saladeros, where they gorge on the offal 
thrown into the river. As in so many other parts of 
the southern continent, extensive tracts, especially the 
marshy woodlands, are rendered almost uninhalutable by 
the clouds of flies, gnats, mosquitoes, and other winged 
as well as wingless pests of all kinds. But, as the tsetse- 
fly disappears in Africa before the planter, here also 
the settled districts, when brought under cultivation, 
enjoy almost complete immunity from these noxious 
creatures. 



PARAGUAY 471 



Stock-Breeding 



Most of the European domestic animals were intro- 
duced by the early settlers. But all did not find 
congenial homes in the Paraguay basin. Neither pigs, 
goats, nor poultry appear to thrive, and the country is 
too hot, or else the herbage too coarse for profitable 
sheep-farming. Hence stock-breeding has hitherto been 
mainly confined to horned cattle and horses. Even this 
industry has had to start afresh after the " five years' 
agony," during which the greater part of the domestic 
animals were killed off. But since then there has been 
a considerable and even rapid increase, especially of the 
oxen, which after falling from about 2,000,000 before 
the war to less than 15,000 in 1870, again increased to 
2,100,000 in 1896. In the same year the horses, 
mules, and asses numbered 246,000 and the sheep 
130,000, while hides, mostly dressed in the local 
tanneries, were exported to the number of 170,000, 
valued at £400,000. It is noteworthy that the descend- 
ants of the old Spanish cattle improve in the direction 
of the north, so that those of Paraguay are better than 
the Corrientes herds, while the Miranda breed of Matto 
Grosso is reputed to be the finest in South America. 

But this law has in recent years been disturbed by 
the crossings in the south with fresh stock from England, 
so that at present many of the Argentine and Uruguayan 
beasts are more valuable for meat-preserving purposes 
than those of Paraguay, where these industries have so 
far been but little developed. This is due not only to 
the relatively small extent of the grazing-grounds, but 
also to the lack of regular communications with Europe. 
No doubt the great waterway is accessible to vessels of 
heavy burden all the way to Asuncion. But its naviga- 



472 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TKAVEL 

tion, chiefly for want of capital, has hitherto been 
neglected, and in 1897 this river-side port was visited 
only by 367 ships of less than 133,000 tons. 

For the same reason railway enterprise has been 
retarded, and in 1898 only one line 156 miles long had 
been opened. It runs from Asuncion through Villa 
Eica south-eastwards to Pirapo, and still remains uncon- 
nected with the Argentine and Uruguayan systems. 



Inhabitants — The Payaguas 

"No serious attempt has yet been made to settle the 
western section of the republic, which is still inhabited 
almost exclusively by a few wild tribes, such as the 
Chamacocos, Angaites Sana])anas, mostly akin to, and 
scarcely less ferocious than, the Tobas of the Pilcomayo. 
Except the Sanapanas, who have in recent years been 
attracted to the neighbouring settlements, even seeking 
employment on the plantations, all these Gran Chaco 
tribes have retained their warlike instincts, and not only 
maintain a hostile attitude towards the whites, but live 
in a state of perpetual strife among themselves. Be- 
tween them and the Guarani populations of Eastern 
Paraguay formerly dwelt the numerous and powerful 
Payagua nation, who were long dominant along both 
banks of the Paraguay river, which, according to some 
authorities, was named from them. But they became 
involved in the operations of the great war, in which 
most of them perished, and since then the few survivors 
appear to have been absorbed in the general population. 
Their practical extinction as a distinct people was 
perhaps hastened by their peculiar speech, a stock lan- 
guage of such harsh utterance that none of the surrouding 
tribes could ever understand or learn to speak it. 



PARAGUAY 473 

The Payaguas were feiuous boatmen and river pirates, 
building wonderfully light canoes, with which they made 
rapid plundering excursions up all the tributaries of the 
main stream, and spread the terror of their name through- 
out all the lands comprised in the Upper Paraguay 
basin. They had many usages in common with the 
Guaicurus of those regions, and some authorities regard 
them as a branch of that nation, from which they 
separated about the year 1770. 



The Guarani and the Missions 

In any case the Payaguas were quite distinct in 
appearance, speech, and temperament from the Guarani, 
who formed the bulk of the primitive inhabitants of 
Eastern Paraguay, and of all the conterminous lands in 
the Middle and Upper Parana valleys. The original seat 
of the widespread Guarani race has been traced to the 
forest region about the Parana, the Paraguay, and the 
Uruguay rivers, where the national characteristics and 
language were preserved in the greatest purity. Al- 
though the term " Guarani " is said to mean " warrior," 
they were not as a rule a savage or ferocious people, but 
rather of a gentle disposition, as was afterwards shown 
by the docility with which they submitted to the severe 
discipline imposed upon them by their Jesuit teachers 
and masters. But that a warlike spirit slumbered 
beneath this outward show of meekness was made 
evident by their heroic conduct during the great war, 
as well as in pre-Christian times, when they appear as a 
conquering people, who increased their strength and 
numbers not so much by bloodshed as by reducing and 
incorporating in the nation all the surrounding tribes. 

Towards the south their expansion was barred by the 



474 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TPtAVEL 

indomitable chaiacter of the still more warlike Charruas 
and Pampas Indians of Uruguay and the Argentine 
plains of the Lower Parana. In the direction of the 
north and north-east, also, the physical conditions of 
a region either under primeval forests, or consisting of 
almost impassable arid campos of vast extent, were 
opposed to the establishment of a great political empire, 
like that of the Incas on the more open Andean plateaux. 
But the Guarani race none the less filtered through in 
sufficient numbers to impose their mellifluous and easily 
accjuired language on a multitude of peoples, ranging 
from the Tupis of the Atlantic seaboard, through the 
Mundrucus and others of the Middle Amazon basin, to 
the Cocomas and Omaguas under the very roots of the 
Cordilleras. 

Thus it happened that when the Jesuits founded 
their missions in the almost inaccessible region amid the 
cataracts of the Middle Parana, they found it convenient 
to adopt a modified form of this widely-diffused Guarani- 
Tupi speech as the lingoa geral, — the common medium 
of instruction and intercourse amongst their rapidly in- 
creasing native congregations. So rapid, indeed, was the 
increase that within five years of the time when they 
first penetrated in 1620 to the secluded district below 
the Guayra Falls, they had already established several 
stations, in which over 50,000 Indians were settled in 
regularly organised communities. The "reductions," as 
the stations were called, implying that here the natives 
were " reduced " from the savage state and brought under 
the civilising influences of the Church, continued to mul- 
tiply, until in Paraguay alone they comprised altogether 
about 140,000 members in 1768, when everything was 
brought to an end by the expulsion of the Jesuits. 

This astounding success, achieved under almost over- 



PAEAGUAY 475 

whelming difiiciilties, was due partly to the admirable 
tact and skill with which the padres appealed to the 
imagination, tastes, and even passions of the aborigines, 
but partly also, and perhaps in greater measure, to the 
peculiar social relations of the times. In those days the 
Paulistas in the east, and tlie Spaniards in the west, were 
everywhere scouring the land in search of hands for 
their mines and plantations. They looked upon the 
natives as their legitimate property, while the natives 
looked to the missions as their only refuge from their 
ruthless persecutors. The result was a constant increase 
of neophytes, received with open arms by the padres, 
who thereby came to be regarded as " receivers of stolen 
property." Belonging also to no nationality, they were 
treated on both sides as aliens and intruders, so that in 
self-defence they were compelled to arm the congregations 
not only against the Charruas and other native marauders, 
but also against their far more terrible Christian foes. 
They gained several victories over the Paulistas, each 
time disarming their subjects (over whom Papal bulls 
had granted them absolute control), either fearing mili- 
tary revolts, or for religious motives. 

Such at least was the policy pursued in Paraguay, but 
not everywhere, and in the Brazilian reductions of Eio 
Grande all adults received a regular training, mustering 
every Sunday at the sound of the drum, and going through 
their exercises with lire-arms, and bows and arrows, 
and all the manoeuvres of attack and retreat. Then the 
arms were replaced in the arsenal till the next Sunday, 
and those rewarded who showed progress in the drill. 
One of the fathers, Matheus Sanches, even headed an 
unprovoked expedition against the Charruas, whom he 
wanted to exterminate because they refused to join the 
mis^iions. Others led " a countless multitude " a!j;ainst 



476 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TliAVEL 

the Spaniards and Portuguese commissioners engaged on 
some boundary question on the frontiers of their respec- 
tive possessions, and in other ways played into the hands 
of their implacable enemies. 

Their government was an absolute theocracy, in which 
they were responsible to nobody, and never troubled even 
to frame a civil or criminal code, but meted out justice 
at their own pleasure. If seldom severe they were 
always stern judges, punishing " venial sins " with prayers, 
fasts, and imprisonment, serious offences with the lash, 
recalcitrants being flogged to death, as in Kussia. With 
the theocracy were combined certain communistic institu- 
tions, such as the withdrawal of young children from the 
parental care and their education in large schools under 
the vigilant eyes of the padres. Here the most rigid 
discipline prevailed, and the whole machinery was sup- 
ported by a detestable system of espionage, under which 
the noblest sentiments of humanity were stifled, and 
every spark of personal freedom extinguished. Hence 
after the expulsion of the Jesuits the congregations, 
possessing no initiative and incapacitated for a free life, 
rapidly melted away, a prey either to their own excesses 
or to the attacks of more robust tribal groups. The 
" Paraguay Missions " of the Middle Parana are now an 
uninhabited wilderness, and the population of the above- 
mentioned reductions of Eio Grande had fallen from 
about 100,000 in 1731 to 7954 in 1814. 



The Paraguayans 

In the present Paraguayan nation there is said to be 
a very large strain of Basque blood, so that one authority 
has proposed to call them " Vasco-Guarani " rather than 
" Hispano-Guarani." Others have discovered a Teutonic 



PARAGUAY 477 

element, betrayed by the light shade of the hair in many 
of the women, and attributed to the German free-lances 
who entered the country with the first Spanish invaders. 
But however this be, their most marked qualities seem 
to be docility, which is a racial character, and indolence, 
which seems to be acquired. In any case the listlessness 
and apathy of the men is dwelt upon by most observers, 
while the women are described as not only physically 
well developed, but also of thrifty industrious habits. It 
is cu.rious to notice the custom inherited from their 
Guarani ancestors of always walking Indian file, as when 
they proceed in the early morning to fetch water from 
the river, with their great pitchers balanced on their 
heads. Their single white cotton garment produces a 
pleasing effect in contrast with their dark complexion. 
This flowing gown reaches down to the calves, is low- 
necked and short-waisted, a cord serving the purpose of 
a girdle. 

Many Guarani women are very finely developed, and 
all have beautiful teeth ; yet according to our standard 
they can scarcely be called handsome, the cheek-bones 
being too prominent and the chin too square. Their 
large black eyes are shaded by heavy brows, and their 
mixed blood is betrayed in their frizzly black and even 
reddish hair. They are inveterate smokers, and are 
usually seen with a large cigar in their mouths. Even 
the little children acquire the habit, and when infants are 
restless mothers have Ijeen seen to soothe them by cram- 
ming their mouths with the cigar they have been smok- 
ing. The severe discipline enforced by the padres in the 
reductions appears to have brought about the usual 
reaction, and casual unions, unsanctioned either by the 
law or the Church, are now the rule rather than the 
exception. Nevertheless the devotion of the women to 



478 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

their temporary partners is undoubted, and by submission 
they have acquired tlie control of the household, so that 
when the unions are dissolved, mostly by mutual consent, 
the children always follow the mother. 

The strangely docile character of the Paraguayans, 
for which no parallel can be found except perhaps amongst 
the gentle and inoffensive inhabitants of the Liu-Kiu 
islands south of Japan, has been attributed to the national 
diet, which is almost exclusively vegetarian. Many 
abstain altogether from meat, living entirely on manioc 
and other vegetables, besides fruits, and especially large 
quantities of oranges. Although rum of a very fair 
quality is largely distilled from the sugar-cane, it is 
prepared mostly for exportation, the general drink of the 
people being Paraguay tea. 

Topography 

It was above seen that, since the expulsion of the 
Jesuits and the dispersion of their congregations there 
has been a gradual shifting of the populations, from the 
Parana basin below the Guayra Tails westwards to the 
Paraguay above Corrientes. Even here urban centres 
are far from numerous, and the subjoined table shows 
that in the whole State there are only five towns with 
over 5000 inhabitants: — 





Pop. 1895. 




Pop. 1S95 


Asuncion 


45,000 


Paraguari . 


. 4,500 


Villa Rica . 


19,000 


Villeta 


. 4,000 


Concepcion 


10,000 


Villa del Pilar . 


. 3,000 


San Pedro 


8,000 


Encarnacion 


. 2,500 


Luque . 


8,000 


Ita . 


. 2,500 



Asuncion, capital of Paraguay, is also the largest and 
oldest place in the country. It was founded in 1536 
by Ayolas on a terrace 50 feet above the main stream, at 



PARAGUAY 



479 



the point where it ceases to be navigable for sea-going 
vessels. Hence Asuncion must always remain the chief 
river-side port of the l*araguay river. Before the year 
1620 it was the capital of all the Spanish possessions in 
the Plate region, and after the declaration of independ- 
ence it was considerably enlarged and partly reconstructed, 
with several fine buildings, such as the Cabaldo, where 
Congress meets, and the cathedral in the Eenascence 





t -^.>^rii.i,i gi 



l3Jlli'i1***^*l|^TOu 



^ 




PALACE OF LOI'EZ, ASUNCION. 



style. The huge palace, forming a conspicuous object 
visible from the port, is an ambitious structure erected by 
the Dictator, Solano Lopez, who aimed at doing everything 
in a grand way. His policy, however, e^'entually ruined 
the place, and Asuncion, which in 185 7 had a popula- 
tion of nearly 50,000, including the suljurbs, was found 
to be completely deserted by tlie Brazilians when they 
captured it in 1869 towards the close of the war. Since 
then it has again prospered, and is now nearly as large 



480 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

as ever, though the signs of former decay are still visible 
in some of its grass-grown streets, all disposed at right 
angles, but running here and there in some quarters for 
long distances through open spaces, unrelieved by a single 
structure of any kind. 

Luque, the first important station on the railway 
running to Villa Rica, may almost be regarded as a 
suburb of Asuncion, from which it is distant only about 
8 miles. For a moment it was even the seat of govern- 
ment after the evacuation of the capital in 1869. But 
at present it is chiefly noted for its banana and orange 
groves, which extend nearly all the way to the river.- 
Paraguari, also a station on the line 45 miles south- 
east of Asuncion, stands on the site of one of the 
missions, which derived an air of sanctity from the 
neighbouring caves, reputed abode of the Apostle St. 
Thomas when he came hither to preach the Gospel to 
the Guarani nation. The present reputation of Paraguari 
is due to the excellent quality of the tobacco which is 
grown in the district, and has already found its way to 
the European markets. About 50 miles beyond this 
place is the flourishing city of Villa Bica, next in size 
to the capita], and for many years the inland terminus 
of the railway with which it is connected. It occupies 
a central position in an extremely fertile district, watered 
by the Tibicuary-mini — that is, the " Little Tibicuary," — 
which, however, is navigable for steam launches all the 
way to A-^illa Eica. The numerous head-streams of the 
Tibicuary descending from the slopes of the neighbouring 
Cordillera all serve to irrigate the extensive manioc and 
tobacco plantations, which are here encircled by densely- 
wooded hills. So advantageously situated is Villa Rica, 
also an old Jesuit foundation, that it is the necessary 
converging point of all the projected railways which 



PARAGUAY 481 

are so urgently needed for the development of the 
immense agricultural resources of the covmtry. 

In the whole of the Middle Parana basin included 
in Paraguayan territory the only place that can be 
called a town is Villa Encarnacion, which stands on the 
main stream 54 miles above the lacyreta rapids, over 
against the Argentine toAvn of Posadas. These places 
have been chosen as tlie future termini of the lines 
which are to effect a junction between the Paraguay 
and Argentine railway systems. But at this point the 
Parana flows with a very wide and swift current, so 
that the spanning of the river by a viaduct must prove 
a costly as well as a difficult undertaking. Encarnacion, 
the Itapua of the natives, was one of the most flourishing 
of the reductions, founded in 1624, and noted for its 
magnificent church, the treasures of which were plundered 
by President Prancia. 

On or near the Paraguay, above Asuncion, the only 
places calling for mention are Villa Concepcion, on the 
left bank, just within the Tropic of Capricorn ; San 
Pedro, on the Jujuy, 8 miles above its junction with the 
main stream ; and Villa Hayes, on the Gran Chaco side, 
a little above the capital. None of them are at present 
of any commercial importance, and Concepcion, formerly 
a great centre of the mate trade, now awaits the pro- 
jected northern railway to revive its fallen fortunes. 
Villa Hayes, the only centre of population in Western 
Paraguay, is named from the President of the United 
States who, in 1879, awarded this wilderness of North- 
East Gran Chaco to the republic. 

Below Asuncion follow Villeta, Villa Franca, Villa 

del Pilar, and the dismantled stronghold of Humaita, in 

the order named. Villeta, a few miles west of the 

thriving little rural town of Ita, lies midway between 

VOL. I 2 I 



482 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the Angostura, or " Narrows," where the stream contracts 
to a breadth of scarcely 270 feet, and the Lamhar6 bluff 
just below Asuncion, which marks the farthest point 
reached in 1528 by Sebastian Cabot, at that time in 
command of a Spanish expedition to the interior. The 
bluff is named from the Payagua chief who here offered 
a stout resistance to the invaders. Villeta is a sleepy 
little river-side port, embowered in palm and orange 
groves. 

Villa Franca, a few miles north, and Villa del Pilar, 
a few miles south of the Tibicuary confluence, lie well 
within the malarious hanados, or " drowned lands," which 
fill up the whole of the peninsular region enclosed by 
the main streams converging at the Tres Boeas. Nearly 
midway between Pilar and the confluence rise the famous 
heights of Humaita, where the Paraguayans held out 
for two years (1866-68) against the combined land and 
river forces of the Allies. Then the great river ran with 
blood, and when the Brazilians stormed Itajnrv at the 
confluence, such was the slaughter on both sides that 
the bodies of the slain floated down-stream for days. 



Historic Retrospect — Administration 

Paraguay, the " Niobe of Nations," inhabited by the 
most peace-loving and unaggressive people in the southern 
continent, has, nevertheless, been tlie theatre of one of 
the most sanguinary dramas recorded in history. But 
the best of qualities carried to excess become vices, and 
it will be seen that the Paraguayans have to thank 
their excessive meekness, their " invertebrate character," 
for all tlieir woes. Till recent times there were no 
" revolutions," as in the other Hispano-American States ; 
no domestic troubles or party strife, and since the 



PAKAGUAY 483 

declaration of independence in 1811 only two foreign 
wars. The first, entirely justified, was waged success- 
fully against the aggressive Argentines, who, immediately 
after the expulsion of the Spaniards, wanted to compel 
the Paraguayans to join the Confederate La Plata States. 
The second, carried to the point of extermination, was 
conducted not by the nation, but by a ruthless Dictator, 
who drove his too submissive subjects like sheep to the 
shambles in defence of a hopelessly mistaken policy. 

Notwithstanding its distance from the Atlantic sea- 
board, and the impossibility of establishing regular 
communications with the Pacific, Asuncion promised in 
early colonial times to become the chief seat of Spanish 
sway in the Plate regions. The water highw^ay to the 
great estuary was open ; the Guarani people of the 
surrounding districts were peaceful and well disposed ; 
while the country was safeguarded from the Paulistas 
and other Brazilian interlopers, at first by the Parana 
rapids, and later by the missions. But the right bank 
of the Paraguay remained in the hands of fierce, wild 
tribes, and it was by some of these that Ayolas, founder 
of Asuncion (1536 or 1537), was murdered on his 
return from an adventurous expedition towards Peru in 
quest of El Dorado. His successor, Martinez Yrala, for 
a time (1542-44) superseded by the famous Nunez, 
Cabeza de Vaca, revived the waning fortunes of the 
young settlement, and at his death Asuncion was the 
most flourishing colony in the whole of the Plate basin. 
Then followed a period of anarchy, after which the 
" province of Paraguay " became little more than a 
geographical expression, as a dependency of the Viceroy 
of Peru. Later, this province, which had originally 
comprised the whole region as far as, and inclusive of, 
Buenos Ayres, was inclvided in the Viceroyalty of Eio de 



484 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

la Plata constituted in 1776. During the revolutionaiy 
period Paraguay alone achieved its independence without 
bloodshed. The last Spanish governor, Bernardo Velasco, 
yielded to the will of the people in 1811, when a 
triumvirate, including Dr. Jose Gaspar Prancia, was 
placed at the head of the administration. 

After the above-mentioned war against the Argentines, 
who were defeated at Paraguari, and again on the banks 
of the Tucuari, the reins of government were seized by 
Francia, who was declared Dictator in 1814, and ruled 
with extraordinary vigour and rigour till his death in 
1840. By Francia was first adopted the fatal policy of 
seclusion, the object of which was to preserve the 
political integrity of the republic against the Argentines 
and others by closing the navigation of the Paraguay, 
and cutting off the country from all intercourse with 
the outer world. Paraguay fara da se (" Paraguay shall 
stand alone"), the dictum of later Italian politicians, 
might be taken as the watchword of this policy, which 
brought Paraguay to the verge of ruin by exciting the 
hostility of all the surrounding states, who were naturally 
opposed to the closing of the great waterway flowing 
also through their territories. Under Francia's suc- 
cessor, Vibal (1840-44), all foreigners continued to be 
excluded. The same system of isolation, with certain 
necessary modifications, was persisted in by Francia's 
nephew, Carlos Antonio Lopez (1844-62), and by this 
dictator's son, Francisco Solano Lopez (1862-70), who 
organised the whole nation on a militarv basis, and 
aimed at the complete control of the main stream by 
erecting the strongholds of Olimpo and Humaita on the 
Paraguay, and then jointly with Uruguay seizing the 
island of Martin Garcia commanding the Parana delta. 
But Brazil, acting in concert with Argentina, soon com- 



PARAGUAY 485 

pelled Uruguay to withdraw from its alliance with Lopez, 
who thus found himself confronted by all three Powers 
when hostilities broke out in 1865. Here is not the 
place to enter into the details of the terrible war which 
was maintained by the Dictator single-handed for five 
years against overwhelming odds, and ended with his 
final overthrow and death by an Argentine spear-thrust 
at Cerro-Cora on March 1, 1870. Suf&ce it to say 
that the Allies dealt leniently with the heroic survivors, 
and, after the inevitable readjustment of frontiers, recog- 
nised the political independence of Paraguay. 

The Treaty of Peace (August 1870) was followed by 
the declaration of a new Constitution on liberal principles, 
the legislature being vested in a Congress of two Houses 
elected directly by the people, and the executive entrusted 
to a President elected for four years, and aided by a 
Vice-President and a Cabinet of five responsible ministers. 
Since then there have been some political troubles ; but, 
on the whole, the Constitution has worked fairly well, 
and Paraguay appears to have now entered on a period 
of rest and material prosperity. The revenue and ex- 
penditure are generally balanced at about £1,000,000, 
while the outstanding debt amounted to £995,000 in 
1898. There is now no army to provide for beyond a 
small force of about 1500 men, maintained chiefly to 
preserve internal order. 

Catholicism is the State religion, the free exercise of 
other forms of worship being permitted. Education is 
free and compulsory, and in 1897 the elementary schools 
were attended by 23,000 pupils; but at that date only 
20 per cent of the native adult population could read 
and write. Instruction is imparted both in Guarani, 
which is still generally spoken, and in Spanish, which 
is the official language of the country. 



CHAPTEK XIV 

BRAZIL 

Extent — Frontier Questions — Area — Population — Ethnical Elements of 
the Population and their Distribution — Physical Features — Seaboard, 
Headlands and Islands — Orography — The Serra do Mar — The Serra 
do Espinha90^The Western Serras, Plateaux, and Campos — Geological 
Formations — The Brazilian Lowlands and Woodlands — Hydrography 
— The Amazon — Estuary — Lateral Channels and Islands — The 
Amazonian Affluents — The Jurua, Purus, and Madeira — The 
Tapajos, Xingu, and Tocantins — The Rio Negro and other Northern 
Affluents — The S. Francisco and other Coast-Streams. 

Extent — Frontier Questions — Area — Population 

" The United States of Brazil," as this vast common- 
wealth is officially designated, ranks for size amongst 
the Great Powers in the world, being exceeded in 
superficial area only by the British, Ptussian, and Chinese 
Empires, and the United States of North America. 
Comprising rather more than one-half of the southern 
continent, it is somewhat larger than all the Hispano- 
American States, together with the Guianas, and is even 
conterminous with every one of these political divisions, 
Chili alone excepted. Brazil is thus bounded landwards 
by French, Dutch and British Guiana, and Venezuela 
on the north, by Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, and 
Paraguay on the west, by Argentina and Uruguay on 
the south, and eastwards by the Atlantic Ocean. 

But frontier questions are still pending v.ith several 



BRAZIL 487 

of the contiguous States, involving, especially in the north 
and north-west, some large but mostly unsettled tracts 
many thousand square miles in extent. Thus, towards 
French Guiana the whole region between the Araguay 
and the Oyapok rivers has long been a subject of litiga- 
tion, both sides basing their claims on an obscurely 
worded article of the treaty of Utrecht. But by the 
Convention of April 1897 the question was referred 
to the Swiss Government, which, by the award of 
December 1, 1900, assigned to Brazil nearly the 
whole of the contested territory. Farther west a less 
extensive zone in the upper valley of the Rio Branco, a 
head branch of the lUo Negro, forms a bone of conten- 
tion, also of long standing, between Brazil, Venezuela, 
and British Guiana. But all points in dispute with 
Argentina were finally settled in F'ebruary 1895 by 
President Cleveland of the United States, to whose 
decision the matter had been submitted by the litigants. 
Here the frontier is formed by the San Antonio afiiuent 
of the I-Guazu and the Pepiri Guazu altluent of the 
Uruguay from their confluences to their sources, and then 
by a straight line drawn from source to source of these 
rivers. All other boundary questions, whether settled or 
still pending, have been dealt with in previous chapters. 
Between French Guiana and Uruguay the Brazilian 
seaboard develops a vast eastward bend, which at Cape 
S. Eoque below the equator approaches nearer than any 
other point of the new world to the eastern hemisphere. 
This coast-line, which describes a series of secondary 
curves in the north, but is diversified by few islands or 
deep inlets except at the Amazon estuary, Bahia, and 
Eio, has a total length of 5900 miles. As the land- 
ward frontiers are estimated at over 10,000 miles, the 
periphery has a total length of perhaps 16,000 miles, 



488 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGliAPHY AND TRAVEL 



including all those tracts which are still the subject of 
litigation with the neighbouring States. 

But within its undisputed limitS; Brazil has a super- 
ficial area of nearly 3,210,000 square miles, with a 
total population of 14,334,000, as at first returned by 
the census of 1890, but afterwards raised to 16,330,000 
by an official revision of the main results. According 
to the previous census of 1872 the population was 
9,930,000 at that date, so that, if these figures can be 
trusted, there has been an increase of no less than 
6,400,000 in eighteeen years. From the subjoined 
table of the areas and populations of the twenty-one 
States for 1890, it wiU be seen that the vast majority 
of the inhabitants are still concentrated in the eastern 
parts of the republic, that is, on the Atlantic seaboard : — 



states. 

Amazonas 

Para 

Maranhao 

Piauhy 

Ceara 

Eio Grande do N 

Parahiba 

Pernambuco 

Alagoas 

Sergipe 

Bahia 

Espirito Santo 

Federal District 

Rio de Janeiro 

S. Paulo . 

Parana 

Santa Catharina 

Eio Grande do Sul 

Minas Geraes 

Goyaz 

Matto Grosso 



orte 



Total 



Area in 
sq. miles. 

732,460 

443,653 

177,566 

116,218 

40,258 

22,195 

28,854 

49,625 

22,583 

7,370 

164,649 

17,312 

538 

26,634 

112,330 

85,453 

37,436 

91,335 

222,160 

288,546 

532,708 

3,209,878 



Population 
(1S90). 

207,610 

859,821 

459,040 

202,222 

881,686 

313,979 

382,387 

1,101,539 
648,009 
461,307 

1,683,141 
382,137 
674,972 

1,227,575 

1,637,354 
626,722 
259,802 
880,878 

3,009,023 
260,395 
170,417 

16.330.216 



BRAZIL 489 

Ethnical Elements of the Population and their 
Distribution 

Here we see that the three great inland States of 
Amazonas, Goyaz, and Matto Grosso, with an area of 
over 1,500,000 squares miles, have a collective popula- 
tion of less than 640,000, whereas the twelve more 
important Atlantic States, with an area of less than 
1,310,000 square miles, have a population of nearly 
13,500,000, while the little Federal District, a few 
hundred square miles in extent, has three times more 
inhabitants than the vast province of Amazonas, which 
is more than one-sixth the size of Europe. Such a dis- 
tribution, taken in connection with the relatively slight 
density of the population generally — about five persons 
per square mile — simply means that the greater part of 
the interior still consists mainly of unsettled backwoods, 
while even the long-occupied coast region is still but 
thinly peopled — not more than ten persons per square 
mile. It has been calculated that, were Brazil as 
densely peopled as Belgium, it would contain upwards of 
1,600,000,000 inhabitants, that is, more than the whole 
world, according to the latest estimates. 

As regards the constituent elements of the population, 
Brazil differs in some important respects from all the 
Hispano-American States. In these, broadly speaking, 
there are only two elements — the aborigines and the 
Europeans — who are for the most part merged in 
varying proportions in dominant nationalities of Spanish 
speech. Here and there — Peru and Bolivia — the fusion 
is far from complete ; but, speaking roughly, it may be 
regarded as well advanced, so much so that, in all fore- 
casts of the destinies of Spanish America, it has to be 
accepted as an established fact. " For better for worse," 



490 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPIIY AND TRAVEL 

the two races are here welded together in a new ethnic 
family for all time to come, the one important exception 
being Uruguay and the adjacent parts of Argentina, 
where the aboriginal element is least pronounced, or even 
in process of elimination. 

In Brazil the relations are different. In the first 
place we have here three distinct elements — the abori- 
gines, the Negroes, and the Europeans — and these also 
are merged in varying proportions in a mixed Lusitano- 
American nationality, which has hitherto been dominant 
and is of Portuguese speech. But, in the second place, 
the triple fusion is not universal, but mainly confined to 
the Atlantic States between the Amazon estuary and 
Eio de Janeiro, that is, to those lying within the torrid 
zone. Here is the true home of that section of the 
Brazilian people, in which are represented all the endless 
and indefinable shades of transition between the three 
specified races, as roughly indicated in the table of 
Mestizo terminology at p. 64. Then follow the Southern 
States of S. Paulo, Parana, Santa Catharina, and Rio 
G-rande do Sul, with which, Ijecause of its great altitude 
and special historic development, must be grouped the 
vast and relatively populous region of Miuas Geraes. 
Here we have no " triple fusion," the negro element being 
everywhere mainly absent, but, as in Spanish America, an 
amalgam of aborigines and whites,' represented chiefly by 
the already described Paulistas (p. 62). These Paulistas, 
forming the bulk of the population in Minas Geraes, 
and in all the early settlements of the conterminous 
western and southern regions, constitute the second 
section of the Brazilian peoi3le, distinguished from the 
first by the absence of black blood. Lastly, the aboriginal 
element tends to disappear in the direction of the south, 
where the white element is continually strengthened by 



BRAZIL 491 

direct accessions from various parts of Europe, but 
especially Italy, Portugal, and Austria. In Kio Grande 
do Sul there were fifteen European colonies with a col- 
lective population of 110,000 out of a total general 
population of 880,000 in 1890, and between the years 
1855 and 1896 as many as 1,700,000 European emi- 
grants settled in Brazil, the vast majority in the southern 
States. During the period from 1873 to 1886, for 
which alone full accurate returns are available, the inimi- 
cjrants numbered 304,796, distributed asunder:^ — 



Italians 


112,279 


French 


. 3,475 


Portuguese . 


110,891 


British 


. 2,215 


Germans 


23,469 


Swiss . 


479 


Spaniards 


15,684 


Russians 


417 


AiTStrians 


. 9,022 


Sundries 


. 26,868 



Since then the relative positions of these nationalities 
have undergone some change, and the Austrians, for 
instance, are now much more numerous than the Ger- 
mans. But the superiority of South over North 
Europeans remains as great as ever, or even tends to 
increase, as in the year 1896, when the immigrants of 
Latin speech, mainly Portuguese, Spanish, and Italian, 
numbered about 140,000, and others (Germans, English, 
Magyars, etc.) only 17,000. It is further to be noticed 
that some of the lands where these immigrants settle lie 
within or just beyond the Tropic of Capricorn (S. Paulo, 
Parana), and are consequently more suited for South than 
for North European settlement. Hence the hopes at one 
time entertained by the Germans of establishing them- 
selves permanently and independently in South Brazil, 
and even of here creating a " Neudeutschland," seem 
already dispelled. They can only enter, with the English 
and other Teutons, as a secondary element of minor 

1 Oskar Canstatt, Das Eejncblikamsche Brasilien (1899), p. 637. 



492 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVP^L 

importance, into the general blend, which is now in pro- 
gress, and promises to result in a third section of the 
Brazilian people, differing from the two others in the 
absence both of Negro and of aboriginal blood. But an 
analogous process is simultaneously going on in the 
adjacent Argentine and Uruguayan lands, the only differ- 
ence being that here Spanish takes the place of the 
closely allied Portuguese, as the dominant linguistic 
factor. Thus is being formed, in a mainly temperate 
region, about one-fourth the size of Europe, a new 
ethnical group of nearly pure Mediterranean (South 
European) stock, capable of almost unlimited expansion, 
and destined perhaps to serve in the south as a set-off to 
the Anglo-Saxon predominance north of the equator. 
At least in the face of such an expansion present political 
frontiers cease to be of weight, except perhaps to indicate 
the future frontiers of a great Latin confederacy created 
" to redress the balance of the north." 

In the absence of later returns, the present propor- 
tions of whites (using the term in an elastic sense), blacks 
and aborigines can only be approximately estimated 
from the census of 1872, when those classed as whites 
numbered 3,787,000 ; Mestizoes, 3,802,000 ; Negroes, 
1,955,000; and Indians 387,000. A calculation made 
on this basis, with some later documentary evidence, 
gives the population for 1897 according to races as 
under : — 

Pure whites, mostly South Europeans .... 2,400,000 
Reputed whites, with slight Negro or Indian strain . 2,700,000 
Full-blood Negroes, chieflj' from Angola and Upper Guinea 2,300,000 

Other half-castes of all shades 8,800,000 

Semi-civilised or settled Indians ..... 450,000 

AVild or Independent Indians 350,000 

Total . . 

17,000,000 



BRAZIL 



493 



In general the pure whites are dominant in the 
southern extra-tropical States, the reputed whites in 
Minas Geraes and all the large centres of population, the 
half-castes forming the substratum almost everywhere, 
while the Negroes are mainly confined to the north-east 
Atlantic States, and the Indians to the States of Para, 
Goyaz, Matto Grosso, and Amazonas. 

The various main sections, as above defined, may now 
be roughly determined, as regards their respective area 
and populations, as under : — 



Sections. 
I 

White, Indian, 

and Negro 

blends, and 

full-blood 

Negroes. 

II 

White and 
Indian blends. 

Ill 

White blends 

(S. Europeans 

mainly). 

IV 

Full-blood 
Indians. 



Domain. 



North-East Atlantic States 
■ mainly, but including ' 
Rio de Janeiro. 



} Minas Geraes, parts of S. ^ 
Paulo and neighbouring r 
lands. J 

Parts of S. Paulo and Rio 
de Janeiro, Parana, Sta 
Catharina, Rio Grande 
do Sal. 



900,000 



Pop. (est. 1897). 



5,600,000 



500,000 8,100,000 



300,000 



Amazonas, Matto Grosso,' 

Parts of Goyaz and Para, j- 1,600,000 
mainly. 



2,500,000 



800,000 



Total 3,300,000 17.000,000 



Physical Features — Seaboard — Headlands and Islands 

In its main outlines Brazil presents a curious resem- 
blance to the Southern Continent, of which it forms the 
eastern section, and in which it appears as if encap- 
sulated, like a box within a box. Thus both are of 
irregular triangular shape, with sides partly coinciding, 



494 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

partly overlapping, broadening out in the north and 
tapering steadily southwards. The resemblance in gene- 
ral outline is well seen by following the contour line 
from the Sierra de Santa Marta to Cape S. Eoque, and 
then from this headland to Fuegia, where in the north 
the general trend of the continental sealjoard is con- 
tinued beyond the Guianas by that of Brazil, while in 
the south the Brazilian seaboard is continued beyond 
Eio Grande do Sul in the same normal direction to the 
extremity of the continent. 

On the whole the Brazilian seaboard maintains the 
same monotonous aspect as that of the rest of the 
continent. The headlands — Orange, do Norte, Raso, 
Branco, S. Agostinho, S. ThomS, Frio — stand out perhaps 
in somewhat bolder relief. Patriotic geographers also 
enumerate as many as forty-two natural havens. But 
very few of these can be regarded as good harliours. 
The safest and most commodious, taking them in the 
direction from, -north to south, are P«ra, Maranliao, 
Parahiba, Pernamhuco, Mageio, Aracaju, Bahia, Ilheos, 
Santa Cruz, Porto Seguro, Victoria, Rio de Janeiro, 
Santos, Paranagua, Santa Catharina, Rio Grande do Sul. 
In this respect the least favoured by nature is the north 
coast which, besides the want of convenient seaports, 
suffers also from the presence of dangerous shoals and 
quicksands. Here the fluvial estuaries are nearly all 
obstructed on their east side by sandl)anks which, under 
the influence of the trade winds setting for a great part 
of the year from the east, accumulate about the river 
mouths, and develop those shifting bars which are so 
dangerous to the navigation of these waters. Such bars 
occur, even in the south, as at Eio Grande, while the 
approaches to Pernambuco are beset by an extensive reef, 
probably of coralline origin. Coral reefs also occur on 



BRAZIL 495 

the coast of Maranlnio, built up by two species of polyps 
said to be peculiar to the Brazilian waters. 

Apart from the fluvial formations in the Amazon 
estuary — Marajo (Joannes), Mexiana, Caviana — the only 
islands worthy of the name are Itaparica at Bahia Bay ; 
Grande, south of Rio de Janeiro ; >Sehastido, on the coast 
of S. Paulo ; S. Francisco, below Paranagua Bay ; and 
Sta Catharina on the coast of Santa Catharina, all lying- 
close to the mainland, of wdiich they are merely detached 
fragments. Politically to Brazil belong also the oceanic 
islets of Fernando Noronha, north-east of Cape S. Eoque ; 
the Abrolhos and Trinidad, with Martin Vaz, east by 
north of Rio de Janeiro. Fernando Noronha, so named 
from its first Portuguese colonist, is about 5 miles 
long and nearly 2 miles broad, and terminates in the 
" Pyramid," a lofty peak rising above the surrounding- 
woods. The island is mainly of volcanic origin, and the 
neighboviring reefs partly of coralline formation. Its 
rocky soil being scarcely cultivable, Fernando Noronha 
is used by the Brazilian Government exclusively as a 
penal settlement. The convicts appear to be employed 
chiefly in hunting down the myriads of rats, which have 
overrun the island since their introduction some years ago. 

The Abrolhos, or Santa Barbara, i'orm a group of 
five islets and numerous reefs, which lie about 34 miles 
from the coast between Bahia and Rio de Janeiro. They 
are the " Manacles " of Brazil, being much dreaded by 
skippers, as appears from their name, Abra os Olhos 
(" Keep your eyes open "). Santa Barbara, the alternati^ e 
name, is taken from the largest member of the group, 
which is about a mile long, but, like all the others, 
rocky, and destitute of spring water and vegetation. 

Trinidad, or Ascensdo, 680 miles east of the coast of 
Espirito Santo, is important enough to have formed a 



496 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

subject of contention between Brazil and Great Britain. 
Yet it is less than 4 miles long, and only 2 miles broad, 
and its only inhabitants are wild cats and goats. But 
Trinidad, also called Ascensdo, because discovered by 
Tristam da Cunha on the feast of the Ascension, may 
have a prospective value either as a coaling or a telegraph 
station. 

Orography — The Serra do Mar 

Brazil is, broadly speaking, divided into two great 
physical regions of unequal extent — the eastern and 
central uplands, which represent all that now remains of 
the ancient Brazilian highlands, and the northern and 
western lowlands, which have replaced the ancient inland 
sea. The uplands, which are thus completely isolated 
by low-lying and mostly wooded plains, may be described 
as an undulating plateau, falling somewhat abruptly 
towards the Atlantic, and stretching in long gentle 
inclines inland towards the Amazon and Parana basins. 
Here the land stands at a mean elevation of about 3000 
feet, scarcely anywhere falling below 2000 or rising- 
above 5000 feet, except in the fragmentary mountain 
ranges by which it is traversed mainly in the direction 
from south to north. Three such irregular chains, which 
in places assume the aspect rather of high plateaux than 
of true ranges, follow in roughly parallel lines from the 
Atlantic seaboard inland, while a fourth bends round in 
Matto Grosso from south to west between the waters 
flowing north to the Amazon and south to the Paraguay 
basin. 

In the extreme south, where, as already described, 
the whole region tapers nearly to a point, the outer 
meridional chain takes the name of the Serra do Mar, 
that is, the " Coast Eange," and although approaching 



BRAZIL 497 

close to the shore, forms nevertheless the true divide 
towards the Parana basin. Thus the traveller, climbing 
the heights at Santos and some other points, finds on 
reaching the plateau that he has also reached the sources 
of the Eio G-rande and other streams all flowing west- 
wards to the Parana or to the Uruguay. But between 
these streams and those which farther south trend east 
to the large coast lagoon known as the Lagoa dos Patos, 
there stretches a broken tableland which is connected 
southwards with the Cuchilla Grande of Uruguay, and 
is skirted northwards by a ridge bearing the same name 
in Portuguese, — Coxilha Grande. Around this tableland 
other short chains radiate in all directions, while the 
Serra do Mar, called also Serra Geral (" Main Eange "), 
continues to follow the coast-line through the States of 
Santa Catharina, Eio de Janeiro, Espirito Santo and 
Bahia, its different sections being locally known as TJie 
Organs, the Serra dos Aimores, and by other designations. 
The Organs, so named from the fanciful resemblance 
of their weathered cliffs to the pipes of a great organ, 
present a singularly imposing and romantic aspect, when 
viewed from the land-locked waters of Eio de Janeiro. 
" Between the northern shore and the foot of the moun- 
tains is a level swampy tract, evidently filled up by the 
detritus borne down by the numerous streams, and 
beyond this the mountain range rises very abruptly 
from the plain. It is towards its eastern extremity that 
the Serra shows that remarkable series of granitic 
pinnacles of nearly equal height, appearing vertical from 
a distance, that suggested the likeness to the pipes of 
an organ, whence these mountains obtained their name. 
The height of the loftier part has been estimated at 
7500 feet above sea-level."-^ 

1 Ball, op. cit. p. 326. 
VOL. I 2 K 



498 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TliAVEL 

But> according to Liais, the highest points scarcely 
exceed 6650 feet, although the main range maintains 
a considerable elevation as far north as the plains of 
Campos and the mouth of the Parahiba do Sul, where 
the Fracle de MacaM peak, 5700 feet high, is visible a 
long way seawards. The detritus referred to by Ball 
appears to be at least partly of morainic origin, boulders, 
shingle, and gravels deposited by the glaciers which 
formerly descended down to the plains. The finer debris, 
probably due to erosion, is all bound together by a red 
earth similar to that which covers large tracts in Paraguay 
and S. Paulo, and is found to be specially suitable for 
the cultivation of coft'ee. 



The Serra do Espinhaco 

Beyond the Parahiba do Sul stretches the second 
meridional chain, the Serra dcv Mantiqueira, called also 
the Serra do Espinhaco, that is the " Spinal Pange," 
which is in fact the " Backbone " of the Brazilian system. 
Beginning north of S. Paulo and of the Tiete Valley, 
under the name of the Serra de Cantareira, it rises 
gradually in the direction of the north-east, and nearly 
due west of Eio de Janeiro culminates in the Itatiaya 
Peak, which, although falHng below 10,000 or perhaps 
even 9000 feet, is nevertheless generally regarded as the 
loftiest summit in the whole of Brazil. It is said to lie 
a long extinct volcano, and Burton even speaks of two 
craters, sulphur beds and sulphurous springs as still 
visible, surmounted, however, by the Agulhas Negras, or 
"Black Needles," three sharp peaks flecked w4th snow 
for a few days every winter. 

Beyond Itatiaya the Mantiqueira range bends round 
to the north, and east of Barbacena, where it is known 



BRAZIL 499 

as the Serra do Sapateiro, and throws off a number 
of branches radiating in various directions over the 
central plateau. While the main range continues its 
northerly trend, another chain, variously known in its 
different section as the Serra de Macaco, the Serra de S. 
Geraldo, the Serra de S. Sehastiao, and the Serra do 
Brigadeiro, converges north-eastwards in the coast 
system. A third branch, running west, has received the 
name of the Uspigdo das Vertentes (" Crest of the Water- 
sheds "), because it forms the divide between the S. 
Francisco basin in the north and the Parana in the 
south. In the same Barbacena knot two other fluvial 
basins have their origin — that of the Eio Pomba, a south- 
easterly affluent of the Parahiba do Sul, and that of the 
Eio Doce, which runs north-eastwards to the Atlantic. 

North of the Barbacena knot, which is certainly one 
of the chief centres of dispersion for the Brazilian rivers, 
the Serra do Espinhago runs at a mean altitude of about 
4000 feet for a distance of nearly 200 miles in the 
direction of the north through the rich mineral region 
of Minas Geraes. In this section the loftiest peaks are 
Itacolumi, just south of Ouro Preto (5 750 feet), and 
Itamhe, a little east of Diamantina (4350 feet). 
Itacolumi, that is, the " Giant," gives its name to the 
peculiar laminated quartz formation, which covers vast 
spaces in Brazil, and in some districts yields both gold 
and diamonds. Itambe, sometimes wrongly described as 
the highest peak of the EspinhaQO range, was ascended 
in 1899 by Mr. H. B. Beaumont, not, however, for the 
first time. Although the natives of the district had no 
tradition of any previous ascent, it was certainly scaled 
early in the nineteenth century by the German ex- 
plorers, Spix and Martius.^ 

^ Geograph. Jour. June 1899. p. 662. 



500 COMPENDIUM OF GP^OGltAPHY AND TRAVEL 

From Itambe is thrown off north-eastwards, between 
the Doce and Juquitinha valleys, the ^erra do Chifre, 
which is still for the most part unexplored, but is known 
to converge with the Serra dos Aimores beyond the Rio 
Mucury Valley. North of Diamantina the EspinhaQO is 
still continued under various names, such as the Serra 
do Gro.o Mogol, the Serra Branca, the Serra das Almas, 
the Serra Preta, the Serra Chapada Diamantina, as far 
as the great easterly bend of the Eio S. Francisco. 
Here the Serras merge in a high plateau, which is 
traversed by a fluvial valley with a douple incline aflbrd- 
iug a continuous waterway between the S. Francisco 
and Tocantins basins. The whole of the region between 
the S. Francisco and the Atlantic presents the aspect of 
a very old plateau, which has been greatly reduced by 
erosion, and carved by the running waters into distinct 
sections, wdiich affect the appearance of low mountain 
ranges disposed in various directions. Thus at Cape 
Trio, terminal point of the Serra do Mar proper, this 
maritime range consists of " great scarped hills of granitic 
gneiss ; hoary, time-worn, and weather-beaten defenders 
of the coast-line against the encroachments of the sea." ^ 



The Western Serras, Plateaux, and Campos 

West of the Rio S. Francisco other somewhat similar 
crests, originating in a plateau which is connected by 
the Serra das Vertentes with the Espinhago, are 
developed parallel with, but at a lower elevation than, 
the " Backbone." Here the Serra da Canastra, the Serra 
das Araras, the Chajxida das 3fangaheirns, the Serra de 
Piauhy, follow in the direction of the north and north- 
east, throwing oft" lateral spurs between all the river 

^ J. W. Wells, Three Thousand Miles throur/h Braxil, vol. ii. l^. 362. 



BRAZIL 501 

valleys and in places broadening out into elevated 
plateaux. 

West of the Araguaya, that is, the great western 
branch of the Tocantins, the same general conformation 
is reproduced. Here the Goyaz plateau, which is 
traversed by the PerirUos {Pyrenees), with their many 
ramifying offshoots, forms a western continuation of the 
Vertentes, and develops farther west the Serra de Santa 
Martha, which throws off one branch between the 
Araguaya and Xingu Valleys, and another southwards to 
the Sierra de Mbaracayu on the Paraguay frontier. 
Between the sources of the Xingu and Tapajos in the 
north and those of the Paraguay and its head-streams in 
the south, the water-parting takes the name of the Serra 
do Pary or Diamantina, and this low range traverses 
the Matto Grosso plateau as the Cordilhcira dos Parcxis — 
(Parecis), and the Cordilheira Geral mainly in a westerly 
direction all the way to the great falls of the Madeira. 

It is noteworthy that these " Serras " and " Cordil- 
heiras " are also locally called " Campos " — Campos dos 
Parexis about the numerous head-waters of the Tapajos 
and elsewhere. They are in fact not so much true ranges 
as the steep rocky escarpments of the great central 
tableland, which merges gradually northwards in the 
Amazonian plains, and falls abruptly southwards down 
to the Paraguay basin. Hence to those dwelling to the 
south they look like long mountain ranges of moderate 
altitude, and are by them called Seri'as and Cordilheiras, 
while for the inhabitants of the northern slopes they are 
nothing but Campos, scarcely to be distinguished from 
the surrounding open and undulating plateaux, which 
are known by this name throughout Central Brazil. 

But these upland campos or chapadas, which have a 
general incline towards the encircling Amazonian low- 



502 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

lands, differ greatly in their main features, according to 
their latitude and height above the sea. But all alike 
present in their herbaceous or scrubby vegetation, or 
else their park-like appearance, with isolated clumps of • 
trees dotted over the grassy plains, the sharpest contrast 
to the primeval woodlands of the seaboard and especially 
of the Amazonian lowlands. The natives distinguish 
between the campos cerrados (" closed plains "), with 
numerous small groves, woods, or thickets, and the 
campos ahertos (" open plains "), where little is to be seen 
except herbaceous or scrubby growths. But the campos 
are all everywhere traversed by chains of low and 
o-enerally rounded hills, and furrowed by broad rather 
than deep river-beds. In some isolated districts they 
even present the same monotonous aspect as the 
Argentine pampas or the Venezuelan llanos. As a rule 
the campos abertos stand at a higher altitude than the 
cerrados, where the pasture-lands are interspersed with 
clusters of low trees or shrubs. 

In general the Brazilian uplands may be described as 
level, ridged, or undulating land "covered with grass 
only in places, or in others by grass, bush, flowering 
plants, cacti, and dwarf palms, or by the cerrados, a 
name that cannot be rendered in English, as there is 
nothing in Europe to correspond to it ; practically it 
means thick bush, having much the appearance of a 
wild neglected English orchard, overgrown with under- 
wood, bushes, and grasses ; the trees are small, extremely 
distorted, and much scattered; they are of extremely 
hardy varieties, and resist equally heat and cold, wet and 
drought. Tliese campos lands often extend over great 
areas ; in Goyaz one can travel for several days through 
such lands without once sighting forest of any kind. 
The atmosphere of these campos, — the savannahs or 



BRAZIL 503 

pi'ciiries of Brazil, is most delightful and exhilarating. 
To thoroughly appreciate it one must have resided for 
some time amidst the dark gloom of the forests, in their 
damp humid air, impregnated with the myriad odours 
of fragrant or offensive plants, and of rotting vegetation, 
and then emerge, like from night to day, on to these 
bright breezy uplands, sparkling with sunlight, gemmed 
with flowers, fragrant with sweet perfumes, and lively 
with the sounds of birds, — whistling, screaming, and 
warbling a noisy concert, — then how one will feel revived, 
and take in the pure, serene atmosphere, full of ozone, 
eagerly and with boyish inclinations to shout, to gallop 
your horse, anything to express your feeling of ecstasy 
and delight. From the savannahs of Roraima right 
through Brazil to its southern provinces is found on 
these uplands this glorious atmosphere. But delightful 
as it is, this campos land is considered, north of the 
latitude of Ouro Preto, unfit for anything but pastoral 
purposes. South of this division the soil improves in 
richness and moisture, and much of it can be adapted 
to the cultivation of cereals" (Wells, vol. ii. p. 372). 

In many places, and especially in the southern 
provinces, the long lines of serras, rising little above the 
level of the plateau, form far less conspicuous objects in 
the landscape than might be supposed from their local 
designations. Thus in the State of S. Paulo the observer 
is especially struck by the insignificant appearance of 
the " mountains," to which his attention is drawn by the 
native guides. " I saw nothing," writes Mr. Ball, " that 
would elsewhere be called a mountain range. The out- 
lines were in most places rounded and covered with 
vegetation; but at intervals occurred steep conical 
masses, of the same general type as the sugar-loaf peaks 
surrounding the Bay of Eio de Janeiro. However steep, 



504 CO-MrENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the rocks nowhere showed angular peaks or edges, these 
being always more or less rounded" (p. 313). 



Geological Formations 

As in so many other parts of the Brazilian uplands, 
these southern plateaux appear, beneath the crust of 
vegetable soil, to consist entirely of reddish arenaceous 
deposits resulting from the erosion and decomposition 
of the prevailing gneiss or granite rocks. Thus in the 
valley of the Parahiba do Sul thick beds of the same 
coarse-grained, red arenaceous deposits are everywhere 
to be seen, while on the slopes of the hills the same 
material lies like so much talus at the base of the round 
granite masses higher up. That such is the true origin 
of the red earth, which was at one time associated with 
the phenomenon of glaciation, appears evident from its 
constituent elements and diffusion over an immensely 
wide area. " The substance and formation of this material 
may be described as a sheet of red, unstratified clay, 
interspersed with pebbles, and boulders overlying the 
rock in place. The stiff, soft clay contains within itself 
all the mineralogical elements usually found in old 
metamorphic rock, such as granite, gneiss, mica, clay- 
slate, etc. ; the boulders are usually masses of a kind of 
greenstone, composed of an equal amount of greenish- 
black hornblende and felspar, and they are entirely 
foreign to the rocks they often rest upon " (Wells, vol. ii. 
p. 373). The absence of sedimentary remains is most 
remarkable, and must be accepted as a conclusive proof 
of the great age of the geological formations throughout 
most of the Brazilian uplands. 

A general survey of the whole region shows that the 
prevailing formations may be reduced to three groups — 



BRAZIL 505 

primitive, transitional, and tertiary. The primitive rocks 
occur especially in the Serra do Mar, which for 600 or 
700 miles forms the seaward escarpment of the plateau 
between Pernambuco and Uruguay. In the Espinhaco, 
where gold and diamonds chiefly abound, the higher 
strata would appear to consist largely of Silurian and 
even older sedimentary rocks. But gneiss and granites, 
including Syenite, are the main constituents of this 
range, where they are in association with talcose slates, 
flints, and micaceous schists, and in general those above- 
mentioned quartz formations known as itacolumite. 
To the prevalence of gneiss are due the pyramidal and 
jagged peaks of the cliffs in the Serra do Mar, while the 
more rounded, dome-shaped summits betray the presence 
of granites in the Espinha90 system. Farther inland 
the plateau consists mostly of primitive schists, talc, 
quartzites, hornblende, granulated limestones, itacolumite 
and itabirite, that is a micaceous variety of hematite, 
like the specular schists of the Carolinas, named from 
Mount Ita.bira north of Ouro Preto. 

Tertiary formations occur both as marine and fresh- 
water deposits, the former along the inlets between 
Bahia and Kio de Janeiro, the latter at several points 
along the coast of S. Paulo. On the seaboard are also 
met the Old Red Sandstones, whicli prevail so largely in 
Goyaz and Maranhao, and are in places highly auriferous. 
Gold is found also in association with common iron -pyrites 
in the quartzite rocks, and is washed down with the 
sands of many rivers, while diamonds occur more com- 
monly in the coarser gravels. The extensive sandstone 
rocks in Matto Grosso and other little known regions 
appear all to belong to the earlier periods. A widely- 
diffused deposit is the so-called Caiiga, a conglomerate 
of all kinds of primitive and later elements formed by 



506 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

the weathering and erosion of the old Brazilian highlands. 
This canga is met not only in the river valleys and on 
the low-lying plains, but also on the slopes of the hills 
and even on the crests of the mountain ranges, covering 
them with a blackish incrustation. Tlie same formation 
occupies wide areas in Goyaz, S. Paulo, and Matto Grosso, 
as well as in many parts of Argentina. 

Eecent surveys have revealed in Pernarnbuco the 
presence of iron, besides gold, silver, antimony, agates, 
and coal. Mineral waters with highly curative qualities 
come to the surface in many places, and are specially 
copious at Lagoa Santa, in the valley of the Eio das 
Velhas, Minas Geraes. But Lagoa Santa and the neigh- 
bouring; district of Cantagallo in the State of Eio de 
Janeiro are more famous for their numerous sandstone and 
limestone caves, where have been found vast quantities 
of the remains of now extinct animals, including those 
of man himself. Here have been discovered as many as 
100 species of mammals and 30 of reptiles, birds and 
the like, amongst them the megatherium, a huge ape, a 
jaguar twice the size of the living species, a cabiai as 
large as a tapir, and a horse like that of the Old World, 
although everywhere extinct in America before the 
discovery. All these were in close contact with fossil 
man, while in the Sumidouro caves were brought to light 
the remains of over thirty human beings, together with 
numerous stone implements rudely fashioned, like those 
of the Old Stone Age in Europe and North Africa. All 
the skulls except one were of the long-headed type, like 
that of the Botocudos, Tehuelches, Puegians, and other 
aborifdnes still surviving in the southern continent. 

Besides those of Lagoa Santa, numerous other springs, 
especially chalybeates, occur in other parts of Minas 
Geraes, as well as in Eio de Janeiro, S. I'aulo, Maranhao, 



BRAZIL 507 

Piauhy, Eio Grande do Norte, Espirito Santo, and else- 
where. Nearly all contain iron in solution with an 
excess of carbonic acid, and many have a pleasant taste, 
while fully as efficacious as those of Europe. The much 
frequented hot sulphur springs of Calclas in Minas 
Geraes have even the reputation of being the best in the 
world, especially for rheumatic and scrofulous affections. 
It is noteworthy that although thermal sources, some 
with a temperature of 100° or even 120° Fahr., are far 
from rare, no volcanoes, with the doubtful exception of 
Itatiaya, have yet been discovered in any part of Brazil. 
This region is also free from underground disturbances, 
although a few slight earthquake shocks were for the 
first time recorded at various points of Santa Catharina 
in the year 1898. 



The Brazilian Lowlands and Woodlands 

But all such phenomena belong entirely to the eastern 
section of Brazil, to the region that has here been defined 
as the Brazilian Uplands. This region, whose western 
limits are somewhat roughly indicated by the middle 
course of the Madeira about the Great Falls, differs in a 
very marked degree from the north-western section of 
Bi-azil — the Brazilian Lowlands, which were to a large 
extent comprised within the limits of the ancient inland 
sea. Politically the lowlands include the whole of the 
state of Amazonas, with the greater part of Para and 
Maranhao, that is to say, the valley of the Amazon with 
the lower courses of its northern and southern affluents, 
the lower Tocantins and the neighl^ouring coast-streams 
as far as the Parahiba do Norte. They stand at a mean 
altitude of probably less than 400 feet, rising in the 
extreme north (Brazilian Guiana) and in the extreme 



508 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

.south (Matto Grosso, Goyaz) to 1000 feet and upwards, 
and comprising about one-fourth of the republic, or some- 
what over 800,000 square miles. 

This immense region, traversed by the largest fluvial 
system and still clothed wdth the largest virgin forests 
of the globe, and almost as level and uniform as the 
marine waters which it has displaced, is physiographic- 
ally distinct not only from the Brazilian Uplands, but in 
many respects from the rest of the continent. Fringed 
north and south by escarpments of primitive and 
Archaean origin, and disposed transversely to the general 
trend of the mainland, the great Amazonian depression 
is emphatically a new land, covered everywhere with 
deposits of recent formation. Even the sandstone hills 
which rise here and there above the surface are relatively 
modern, or at least younger than the rocks of the 
Guianas and the eastern uplands. Many present per- 
fectly smooth and level summits like polished tables, and 
appear to have been formerly continuous over vast 
spaces, their present isolation being due, according to 
Agassiz, to a prodigious amount of denudation. The 
unbroken surface formed originally a vast flooded plain 
which has been deeply furrowed and eroded, nothing now 
remaining except those isolated fragments, hard enough 
to resist the action of the waters by which all the rest 
has been swept away. 

To the observer ascending the Amazon, these table- 
topped heights form a conspicuous feature of the land- 
scape, especially about and above the Tapajos confluence, 
at Erere and Obidos on the left bank and near Santarem 
on the opposite side. Here the main stream is confined 
to a relatively narrow channel by the opposing cliffs, 
through which it appears to have carved a passage sea- 
wards (see p. 14). " Strange and interesting as is the 



BRAZIL 509 

appearance of these clifls, 1000 feet high, they are not 
exceptional to the basin of the Amazon. At its farthest 
western extremity in the Serra de Cupati, bordering the 
banks of the Eio Japura, and also in the western face of 
the Chapada da Mangabeira, are encountered identical 
formations, and even to the north in Eoraima, and its 
brother, Kukenam, also exists a somewhat similar appear- 
ance. These great precipitous bluffs and isolated table- 
topped hills are indicative, or at least suggestive, of a 
great denudation that has either long since occurred or is 
yet happening " (Wells, vol. ii. p. 336). 

But the most striking feature of these boundless 
wooded plains is the superabundance of the liquid ele- 
ment, so much so that the Amazonian depression might in 
a sense be almost described as a terraqueous domain. Next 
to this wildernesss of waters, its most distinguishing 
character are its interminable woodlands. Nowhere else in 
the world is there so vast and continuous an extent of 
arboreal growths. With the exception of a few miles of 
roadway about the large towns, with difficulty kept free 
from the rank vegetation, the whole of this wooded zone 
is absolutely trackless and almost sunless. Hence the 
singular habit acquired both by plants and animals to 
assume the character of creepers and climbers, to struggle 
upwards, as it were, in search of light and air. This 
tendency, forced upon them by their surroundings, is 
shared by many vegetable forms, which in other regions 
do not belong to the trailing or climbing orders of plants. 
The most common instances are afforded by the legumin- 
ous jasmine, nettle, and similar families. There is even 
a twining palm-tree, the Jacitara of the Tupi natives. On 
the other hand, such trees as do not climb grow to an 
unusual height, and are everywhere entangled in the 
coils of huge snake-like lianas. Large trees and plants 



510 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

of parasitic growth interlace their matted foliage in 
inextricable confusion, some twining together like cables 
composed of several strands, while others are twisted in 
a thousand ways round the stems, forming gigantic folds 
and meshes about the thick upper branches. Others 
again trail along zigzag fashion, or else shape themselves 
like the rungs of a ladder leading to the dizzy heights 
above. The flowers and the fruits of the great forest- 
growths are all to be sought in these upper regions of 
leafy domes, where the tree-tops enjoy the free air, the 
light and warmth of the tropical suns. All below is 
dark, mouldy, and cavernous, the dank soil and gloomy 
recesses unrelieved by bright flowers or even any green 
herbage. 

It should here be noted that the continuous forest 
zone is not confined to the Amazonian depression, but 
extends also along the sea-board, especially about the 
fluvial estuaries and on the low-lying tracts between the 
escarpments of the plateau and the sea-shore. Here also 
the primeval woodlands formerly stretched with little 
interruption for hundreds of miles. They are similar in 
their main features to those of the great equatorial river 
valley, and contain trees of the same or allied genera, 
although the species are in many respects different. 
Such especially is the case with the palms, which 
relieve the more sombre masses of the woodlands in both 
regions, but, while presenting the same variety of size, 
stem, crown, and leaves, are represented by different 
species in the two zones. Where the land is more ele- 
vated and hilly, the trees are generally of less lofty 
growth and farther apart. All the tribe of plants with 
long, broad and glossy leaves peculiar to the swampy 
inland region are here absent ; but in compensation 
flowers are much more profuse, an endless variety of 



BRAZIL 511 

lovely ferns beautify the glades, and on the higher slopes 
the Brazilian pine {Araucaria hrasiliensis) enters as a 
fresh element into the woodland scenery. 

Originally this forest zone clothed nearly the whole 
surface of the Atlantic provinces from about 25° S. lat. 
to the Amazon estuary, the chief exception being the 
somewhat arid districts of Ceara and neighbourhood 
north of Pernambuco, where arboreal vegetation is more 
scanty. Nourished by the already described rich red 
loam, and stimulated by the high temperature and copious 
rainfall, this magniticent flora spread and flourished 
everywhere, developing, under the influence of the secular 
struggle for existence, the thousands of strange and 
beautiful forms that now delight the eyes of the observ- 
ant traveller. But in the mountainous southern provinces 
extensive tracts of these glorious woodlands have been 
cleared for the plantations and the purposes of civilised 
man, and although some of these clearings may be 
afterwards again abandoned to nature, the second growth 
never attains the charm and luxuriance of the primeval 
forest. Such woods of second growth, locally called cad- 
pueira, that is, " felled timber," consist of multitudes of 
low trees and saplings matted together with thorny 
bushes and creepers. After some experience of these 
after-growths in the province of Rio de Janeiro, Prince 
Adalbert of Prussia thus speaks of the impression pro- 
duced on the observer by the first sight of the true 
primeval woodlands : — 

" At first we gazed in wonder on the labyrinth of 
tall straight trees rising like giants above the tangled 
creepers and climbers which surrounded us. We looked 
up to the light canopy of foliage, through which was seen 
the vault of heaven as through a veil ; but we could not 
account to ourselves for all we beheld. Every object 



512 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

here is colossel, everything seems to belong to a primeval 
world. We feel ourselves to be dwarfed by our surround- 
ings, and to form part of some other world. Our astonish- 
ment is increased by the great difference between the 
vegetation of these forests and our own. Instead of the 
flowering shrubs and fruit-trees with which we are 
familiar, we here see gigantic growths, twice or thrice 
their size, in all the splendour of the bloom that clothes 
the whole crown of the tree with its colour. 

" The chief glory of our day's ride were such trees with 
magnificent large lilac or white blossoms, all contrasting 
beautifully with the varied green tints of the surround- 
ing foliage. After enjoying this splendid display of 
colours, we turned to the deep gloom which stood re- 
vealed between tlie forest giants along our path. The 
flame-coloured efliorescence of a Tillandsia, formino; a 
bunch a foot long and resembling a huge pine-apple or 
strawberry, glanced like fire amid the dark foliage. 
Again, our attention was attracted by the lovely orchids 
climbing up the straight stems, or gracefully festooning 
the branches, which seldom shoot out from the trunk at 
a less height than 50 to 80 feet from the ground. 
Among the various plants which spring from the boughs 
or cling to the stems, are the mosses hanging down, not 
unlike horses' tails, from the spreading branches. Myriads 
of woody climbers thus suspended in the air are often 
several inches round or even as thick as a man's body, 
and covered with bark like the branches themselves. 
But it is impossible for any one to conceive the fantastic 
forms they assume, sometimes falling like straight poles 
to the ground and there taking root again, sometimes 
affecting the form of large hoops or rings ten to twenty 
feet in diameter, or else twisted and coiled together like 
so many cables." 



BRAZIL 513 

Hydrography — The Amazon — Estuary — Lateral Channels 
and Islands 

From the hydrographic standpoint Brazil belongs 
entirely to the Atlantic basin, to which all the running- 
waters find their way through three great drainage 
areas — The Amazon -Tocantins in the north, the Parana- 
Uruguay in the south, and the eastern seaboard between 
Uruguay and the Amazon estuary, with a small tract 
extending beyond the same estuary to French G-uiana. Of 
these areas by far the most extensive is the first, even 
if the Tocantins be detached from it as now forming 
an independent fluvial system. With its innumerable 
northern and southern affluents, some of which are them- 
selves rivers almost of the first magnitude, this prodigious 
waterway drains the whole of the vast province of 
Amazonas, with a great part of Matto Grosso and Para, 
drawing its supplies from regions extending five degrees 
to the north and fifteen to the south of the equator, and 
flowing from Tabatinga, where it enters Brazilian territory, 
for 2400 miles eastwards to the Atlantic. Throughout 
the whole of this distance, the Amazon, whose upper or 
Andean section has already been described, resembles, 
wherever free from islands, rather a great arm of the 
sea than a fresh-water inland artery. Even above the 
Madeira confluence the permanent channel is here and 
there several miles wide, while lower down, as at Porto 
de Moz, above the delta, it expands to a width of 40 or 
50 miles. The current, which has a normal easterly 
trend south of the equator, on which it converges at the 
delta, is generally placid and almost sluggish, although 
varying somewhat with the incline, and at a few points 
attaining a velocity of from 3 to 4 miles an hour. 

But at Tabatinga, where it is 2 miles wide, tlie 
VOL. I 2 L 



514 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Solimoes, as it is called between this point and the Eio 
Negro confluence, has already reached the low level of 270 
feet above the sea, so that the mean fall throughout its 
Brazilian course is scarcely perceptible. In fact it is 
estimated by Canstatt at not much more than one yard 
in 32 miles, except during the floods, when the fluvial 
channel is merged in the Rio Mar (" Sea Elver "), as it is 
then called by the Brazilians. As in the Nile valley, 
vast tracts are thus periodically covered with a rich 
sediment, the marks of which are in many places left on 
the stems of the trees to a height of 60 feet above low- 
water level. The rise, which begins in January and 
reaches its maximum in June, is mainly due to the 
regularly recurring tropical downpours, which greatly 
increase the volume, especially of the southern affluents, 
and cause them to become for a part of the year 
tributaries rather of a great inland sea than of a fluvial 
water-course. But the effect is certainly heightened by 
the great bore, or pororoca, as it is locally called, which 
at the syzigies, when sun and moon act in concert, rushes 
up the estuary like a huge ocean wave 16 feet high, 
stemming and driving back the main stream itself, and 
at certain spring-tides penetrating for hundreds of miles 
inland, occasionally even as far as the Purus confluence. 
At these times depths of 500 or 600 feet have been 
recorded by the soundings, which, however, are for the 
most part highly untrustworthy, due attention not 
having always been paid to the velocity of the current. 
Hence the results vary enormously, even for the same 
places and seasons, and according to some more careful 
recent surveys, the depth of the channel would appear 
nowhere to exceed 400 feet at any time. 

As elsewhere pointed out, no true delta has been 
developed, and the great bulk of the water representing 



BRAZIL 515 

the drainage of half a continent is discharged into the 
Atlantic mainly through a single channel at the equator. 
This channel, which is disposed in a number of secondary 
waterways by Mexiana, Caviana, and several other insular 
formations, sweeps round the north side of Marajo or 
Juannes, which although called an island is really a part 
of the mainland, from which it is .separated towards the 
west only by a few narrow passages. On the south side 
Marajo is enclosed by another very broad estuary, the 
so-called Rio Para, which looks like a second branch of 
the Amazon, which would thus seem to bifurcate above 
Marajo and form a delta enveloping that island between 
its two arms. Such was, no doubt, formerly the case ; but 
it is so no longer, and at present the main stream sends 
very little of its contents to the ocean through the Eio 
Para, with which, in ftict, it is connected only by an 
intricate network of backwaters, narrow lateral passages 
and other shifting channels. No doubt some of these 
furos, as they are called, are navigable, but they are so 
narrow that there is scarcely room for two steamers to 
pass each other in them. Hence some are reserved for 
the up journey to the Amazon, others for the downward 
passage, and this rule of the road is carefully observed 
by the local pilots, so that collisions are rare. All these 
channels are merged in a continuous sheet of water during- 
the floods, when the Para again assumes the aspect of a 
southern arm of the Amazon. But at other times it is 
now rather an independent estuary, through which the 
Tocantins and a few quite secondary coast - streams 
reach the Atlantic. When the Amazon extended several 
hundred miles farther seaward than at present, the 
Tocantins formed undoubtedly one of its great southern 
affluents, but is, under the altered conditions, large 
enough to be considered and treated as an independent 



516 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Huvial system discharging to the sea through the Pai'a 
estuary. 

llowing entirely through level and densely wooded 
lowlands, the Brazilian section of the Amazon presents 
almost everywhere extremely flat banks stretching for 
interminable distances away from the channel of the Eio 
Mar. These tracts, forming a sort of debatable land 
between terra jirma and the liquid domain, are scarcely 
accessible except by canoes or keelless boats, being inter- 
sected in all directions by stagnant backwaters, sluggish 
lateral channels or shallow lagoons, all of which are 
continually shifting their beds, enlarging or contracting 
their margins with every recurrent inundation. In some 
places the lateral ixtranamerims ("little rivers"), as they 
are locally called, extend for hundreds of miles generally 
parallel with the main stream. It is thus possible to 
ascend the valley of the Amazon in a canoe for vast 
distances, and even pass from tributary to tributary 
through the dense forests without ever entering the 
main river. But for regular navigation these byways are 
useless, owing to the fluctuations to which they are 
subject after the periodical floods. 

Similar fluctuations extend to the great artery itself, 
where, however, it is not the liquid masses but the 
insular formations that are suljject to incessant change. 
Such formations occur everywhere, but are everywhere 
of variable character — some mere shoals and banks flush 
with the surface and swept away by the next freshet ; 
some permanent land rising well aboA'e the normal water- 
level, and for the most part densely wooded ; others again 
dangerous floating masses, torn from the river banks and 
drifting with the stream. Many of the caa-apoam, as 
the true islands are called, in contradistinction to the 
'prayas and coraes, that is, the evanescent sand-banks 



BRAZIL 



17 



form familiar landmarks 5 or 6 miles long, generally 
encircled by a mangrove fringe, and clothed with the 
montrichardia and other plants of arborescent habit. 
Amongst the largest of these are the llJia de Paricatuha, 
and the Ilha de Tupinamharanas, at the Madeira conflu- 
ence, the latter so named from a warlike band of Tupis 
who, like many other kindred tribes, withdrew from the 
Portuguese invaders of the seaboard, and here took refuge 
about the year 1560. This large island, or rather 
riverine tract, is formed by the Furo Uraria, a narrow 
channel branching off from the right bank of the 
Lower Madeira and joining the main stream about 
200 miles lower down. 



The Amazonian Affluents 

After entering Brazilian territory, the Amazon con- 
tinues to be joined on both banks by numerous affluents, 
many of which equal or surpass the largest European 
rivers in length and volume. These affluents are classed 
by the natives in two categories — the " Blackwaters " and 
the " Whitewaters " — according to the apparent colour of 
their liquid contents. Streams flowing through alluvial 
tracts, where the loose friable soil is continually washed 
away, are " white " because of the usually light shade of 
their turbid water, while those confined in rocky beds are 
" black," although really much clearer than the others. 
The Amazon itself belongs, as might be expected, to the 
white class, which are said to be far less malarious 
than the black, and these in their turn more exempt 
from the mosquito plague. Of both there are altogether 
over 200, of which about 100 are navigable, while 18 
are described as rivers of the first rank, and 6 longer 
and more copious than the Ehine. Within the Brazilian 



518 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGllAPHY AND TRAVEL 



frontier there are thus altogether 
navigable waters thus distributed : — 

Main stream ..... 

Tributaries on both banks 

Lakes and Lagoons .... 



27,000 miles of 



2,-300 miles 
20,700 „ 
4,000 „ 



Subjoined are some of the more important affluents on 
both banks, taken in the direction from west to east : — 



Southern Affluents 





Length, 
miles. 


Basin, 
sq. miles. 


Mean Discharge, 
cub. ft. per second. 


Navigable 
Course, 
miles. 


Javary 


600 


35,000 


50,000 


550 


Jutahy 


400 


12,000 


18,000 


380 


Jurua 


1300 


92,000 


90,000 


1000 


Purus 


2230 


148,000 


140,000 


1560 


Madeira 


3000 


495,000 


570,000 


1000 


Tapajos 


1200 


165,000 


184,000 


870 


Xingu 


1300 


150,000 


140,000 


620 




Northern Afflue> 


■ts 




Iga (Putumayo) 


1000 


45,000 


75,000 


650 


Japura 


1700 


120,000 


178,000 


930 


Negro 


900 


275,000 


385,000 


480 


Trombetas . 


350 
1750 


47,000 


54,000 
360,000 


320 


Tocantins . 


350,000 


500 


Amazon from "j 
Tabatinga to [ 










2300 


2,230,000 


4,250,000 


2300 



Estuary 



The Jurua, Purus, and Madeira 

Beyond the Javary, already referred to as the 
frontier river towards Peru, follow the Jutahy, the 
Jurua, the Teffe, and the Purus, all of which are strictly 
lowland streams lying almost entirely within Brazilian 
territory, and winding in somewhat sluggish channels in 
a parallel north-easterly direction across the bed of the 
old Amazonian sea. Hence all are free from rapids and 



BRAZIL 519 

other obstructions, and as they lie well within the zone 
of heavy rains, are copious waterways navigable nearly 
to their sources. Although ranking in Brazil only as a 
third-rate river, the Jurua was ascended for over 1120 
miles by Chandless to a point where it was still 30 feet 
deep and 400 feet wide. Still longer and more copious 
is the Purus, which is accessible to steamers for 800 miles, 
was actually ascended by Serafini 1300 miles in boats, 
and has a total length of 1850 miles. There are many 
head-streams, some, such as the Aquiry, Pauyarim, and 
Tapana, themselves large and navigable rivers ramifying 
widely over the wooded Amazonian plains, which super- 
abound in all kinds of valuable forest products. 

Beyond these tranquil and almost stagnant waterways 
follows the impetuous Madeira, largest of all the southern 
affluents, which is formed by the junction of the Itenez or 
Guapor<^, with the Bolivian Mamore above the Great 
Falls, as described in a previous chapter. The Guapore, 
which for the Brazilians is the upper course of the 
Madeira, and in any case is much wider if not more 
copious than the Mamore, almost intermingles its waters 
with those of the Paraguay at the low narrow divide 
between the two basins near the town of Matto Grosso. 
After collecting the surface drainage of the southern 
slopes of the Cordilheira Geral, it converges with the 
Mamore in a single stream, here already half a mile wide, 
some distance above the junction of the Beni on the left 
bank. Before reaching this junction the Madeira already 
enters the rocky gorges of the projecting spurs of the 
Cordelheira through which it has to cut its way down to 
the Amazonian plains. 

Thus is developed the long series of falls and rapids, 
which have a total length of over 200 miles, as appears 
from the plans of the railway which has been projected 



520 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

to turn these insuperable obstructions to the navigation, 
and is 180 miles long, although avoiding some of the 
sharper fluvial windings. Throughout this section the 
stream is everywhere swift and dangerous, with many 
back currents, whirlpools, and swirling waters, even 
between the actual falls themselves. Between the Great 
and Little Guajara Falls above the Beni confluence, and 
the Santo Antonio rapids where the river escapes from 
its rocky fetters to the plains, as many as twenty of the 
more formidable barriers have been enumerated, some 
bearing such expressive names as Misericordia and 
Galderao do Inferno, i.e. the " Cauldron of Hell." Those 
specially known as the Madeira Falls are not the most 
imposing; but they stand just under 10° S. lat., w^here 
the river quits Bolivian territory and becomes entirely a 
Brazilian watercourse, and, according to some authorities, 
here properly takes the name of Madeira, that is, the 
"Driftwood Eiver." It was so named in 1725 "by its 
first explorer, Palheta, who noticed large quantities of 
snags and other driftwood floating down with the stream. 
The native name, current before that time, was Cayari, 
the " White Eiver." 

At the station of Santo Antonio, a little below the 
rapids of like name, where all navigation properly so 
called is arrested, the Madeira is a noble river about 
1000 yards wide, and at this distance of some 1600 
miles from the Para estuary, is accessible to ocean- 
going steamers for eight or nine months in tlie year. 
Even in the dry season from August to October, when 
there is a total fall of nearly if not quite 50 feet below 
the highest flood- waters, steamers and other craft drawing 
3 or 4 feet ascend right up to the foot of the rapids, 
though care has to be taken at the Tamandoa sand-bank 
above the confluence of the Bio Machado on the right 



BRAZIL 521 

side. At low water this sand-bank extends for many 
miles, and is frequented by prodigious numbers of turtles 
for the purpose of laying their eggs. " On one occasion, 
passing this bank in a canoe, I saw an extraordinary 
sight. For miles, as far as the eye could reach down the 
river, were continuous rows of turtle at the water's edge ; 
the rows being eight or ten deep, many thousands must 
have been collected together." ^ 



The Tapajos, Xingu, and Tocantins 

Between the Madeira and the Tocantins the Amazon 
is joined by two other great tributaries — the Tapajos 
and the Xingu — both of which draw their farthest 
supplies from the northern slopes of the central divide 
between the Amazon and Paraguay basins, and, after a 
nearly parallel northerly course of many hundred miles 
through Matto Grosso and Para, reach the right bank 
of the main stream below the Obidos narrows. The 
crest of the divide where these Amazonian streams take 
their rise has a mean altitude of not more than 1600 or 
1700 feet, although dominated here and there by a few 
isolated peaks from 2000 to 3000 feet high. Seen from 
the south, where it falls in steep escarpments abruptly 
down to the Paraguay basin, it presents the aspect of a 
long mountain range of moderate elevation. But its 
true character is rather that of a plateau with a somewhat 
gentle incline in the direction of the north, where it 
gradually merges in the Amazonian plains. 

The true mountain range, still represented in a 
fragmentary way by the isolated peaks, has mostly dis- 
appeared by weathering and the erosion of the running 
waters, wliich have ravined the plateau itself, and has 

^ Mathews, ojj. cit. p. 21. 



5 22 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

exposed the very old crystalline rocks — gneiss, porphyries, 
granites, and quartzites — which form the main con- 
stituent elements of the whole region. Thus the Tapajos, 
which is formed by the junction of the Arinos, Juruena, 
and several other head-streams, all rising on the northern 
slope of the Campos or Cordilheira dos Parexis, develops, 
like the Madeira, a long series of falls and rapids about 
its middle course, where it cuts its way down to the 
plains. Some of these cataracts, such as that do Inferno, 
bear even similar names, and are followed 300 miles 
farther on by the Salto Augusto, which arrests all naviga- 
tion even at high water. Beyond these falls the Tapajos 
is accessible to large vessels for the rest of its course 
of over 200 miles through the Amazonian woodlands 
to its junction with the main stream near Santarem. 
Here is formed the large flooded depression of Zal'e 
Villaf ranca or Campinas, which communicates through 
several channels both with the Amazon and the right 
bank of the Tapajos. 

Like the Tapajos,^ the Xingu (Shingu) ^ is obstructed 
by numerous reefs and rapids, some of which are im- 
passable even by canoes. It enters the main stream 
through a very broad, island-studded mouth, at the head 
of the Amazon estuary, with which its lower reaches are 
completely merged during the floods. The Xingu flows 
mostly through unsettled wooded districts, which are 
still held by fierce and hostile wild tribes ; hence its 
basin was little known before the explorations of Von 
den Steinen in 1884-87. 

Beyond the Xingu follows the now semi-independent 
basin of the Tocantins, which comprises nearly the whole 
of Goyaz, the western parts of Matto Grosso, and a 

^ In roi-tuguese x — sli, as in shin; j = y ; hence Tapa.jos=Tapayos ; 
Xingd = Shingu. 



BRAZIL 523 

considerable section of East Para, with a drainage area 
of probably not less than 350,000 square miles. Its 
lower course is formed by the junction about 6' S. lat. of 
two great branches, themselves formed by numerous head- 
streams, some of which have their sources on the slopes 
of the Serra de Santa Martha, some fourteen degrees 
farther south, where they almost intermingle their waters 
with those of the Upper Parana and S. Francisco affluents. 
Of the two main upper branches the Araguaya from the 
west appears to be the more copious, as it certainly is 
the longer, although the name of the Tocantins is 
retained by the eastern branch because the Portuguese 
pioneers came first upon this great waterway. In 
colonial times all private exploration of the interior was 
prohibited under the severest penalties, and in the 
eighteenth century Tavares Lisbao narrowly escaped with 
his life for having descended the Tocantins all the way 
to Para. This eastern branch is formed by the junction 
of the Paranatinga and Maranhao head-streams, the 
former descending from the Paranau and Tabatinga 
ranges, the latter from the little Lake Formosa in the 
Pireneos transverse ridge. Below the confluence the 
Tocantins skirts the eastern foot of the Cordilheira 
Grande in a northerly direction to its junction with the 
Araguaya from the Goyaz uplands. In this section of 
its course the Tocantins is obstructed by several rocky 
barriers caused by the projecting spurs of the Cordilheira, 
and even below the Araguaya confluence it has to sur- 
mount the CacJioeira Grande (" Great Palls "), which 
arrests all shipping within 130 miles of the estuary, 
so that, notwithstanding its vast extent and a discharge 
of about 360,000 cubic feet per second, this great fluvial 
system is almost useless for navigation. To this fact 
is largely due the backwaixl state of the vast province 



524 COMPENDIUM OF CxEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

of Goyaz, which has no direct access to the sea, although 
the Araguaya branch, forming its boundary towards 
Matto Grosso and Para, is navigable for long stretches 
at least in its middle course. After receiving several 
copious streams on both its banks the Araguaya ramifies 
into two great arms, which again meet 250 miles lower 
down. Thus is formed the great island of Bananal, that 
is, the " Banana Grove," a rich alluvial tract about 8000 
square miles in extent, rising well above the highest 
floods and enclosing the Lagoa Grande, a large sheet of 
water communicating with the eastern arm. Below 
Bananal the Araguaya is so beset by reefs and rapids, 
and even falls, that in this section of its course it is 
even less navigable than the Tocantins. 



The Eio Negro and other Northern AflBuents 

From the north the Amazon also receives many con- 
tributions, especially in the Solimoes section, where it is 
joined by the already described Putumayo {lea), the 
Japura and the Negro, this last by far the greatest of all 
its affluents. The Japura {Hyapiira), rising with many 
head-streams on the Colombian uplands, has at first a 
tumultuous course, rushing through deep rocky gorges 
and over a long series of rapids to the great falls, below 
the Araracoara reefs, where it is precipitated over a 
magnificent cascade fully 100 feet high. In its sluggish 
lower course it develops a labyrinthine system of creeks, 
lagoons, backwaters, and lateral channels, which com- 
municate with the main stream at several points both 
above and below the true confluence opposite Teffe. 
During the floods the whole of this low-lying region, 
some 40,000 square miles in extent, resumes the aspect 
of the old Amazonian sea all the way to the Lower Negro 



BRAZIL 525 

basin. Below the point where it is connected by the 
Cassiquiare with the Orinoco system the Negro is joined 
on its right bank by the JJawpes {Ucayaris), which 
descends through many falls and rapids from the 
Colombian highlands, and is by many geographers re- 
garded as the true upper course of the Negro. Below 
the confluence, by which its volume is more than doubled, 
the Negro trends eastwards at first over numerous 
cataracts and other rocky barriers, and then with a more 
placid current to its junction with the Tao Branco 
(" White Eiver ") from the north. Here the contrast 
is very marked between the dark though limpid waters 
of the Negro and the lighter stream of the Branco 
descending from the argillaceous plains on the British 
Guiana frontier. For some distance below the confluence 
the two rivers flow side by side before mingling their 
waters, which enter the Amazon at Manaos through a 
broad channel like a great inland estuary. 

The Barra do Rio Negro, as Manaos was formerly 
called, has reference to a sort of " bar " caused at the 
confluence by a return current setting from the Amazon 
up its great affluent. Here the Negro is certainly over 
100 feet deep at low water, and rises about 40 feet high 
during the floods. But throughout its lower course it is 
greatly obstructed by shoals and quicksands, so that 
steamers drawing no more than 4 or 5 feet have 
sometimes to stop running, though they are generally 
able to ascend 450 miles to the head of the navigation 
at Santa Izabel, near the last rapid below the Uaupes 
junction. 

Beyond the Eio Negro the Amazonian basin is greatly 
contracted by the Sierra Acarai and its eastern exten- 
sions, which form the divide towards the waters flowing; 
through the Guianas north to the Atlantic. Hence 



526 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

throughout the rest of its course to the estuary the 
Amazon is joined on its left bank only by relatively 
small affluents, which are in no way comparable with 
the Tapajos and the other great tributaries on the 
opposite side. Amongst the more important, if not the 
largest, is the Tromldas, which drains a considerable 
extent of the northern savannah, and reaches the main 
stream just above the Obidos narrows, where it is con- 
fined to a channel scarcely a mile wide, but with a depth 
of perhaps 250 feet and a velocity of over 4 miles an 
hour. A curious feature of these north-eastern affluents 
is their tendency to develop broad lakes or lagoons before 
reaching the main stream. These flooded depressions — 
Saraca on the Uruba; Jamunda above and Surubiu 
below the Trombetas and many others — appear to be 
formed not by the rivers themselves, but by the large 
quantities of the sedimentary matter deposited by the 
Amazon about their mouths, thus stemming the current 
and causing it to expand into shallow reservoirs along 
their lower course. 



The S. Francisco and other Coast Streams 

Of the numerous rivers which reach the Atlantic in 
independent channels between the Amazon estuary and 
Uruguay, incomparably the largest is the S. Francisco, 
which has its farthest sources near those of some of the 
Parana head-streams on the slopes of the Serra da 
Canastra in the south of Minas Geraes, over 2000 feet 
above sea-level. In its upper course it is a boisterous 
upland stream, descending througli a succession of rapids, 
here called escadinhas (" steps "), down to its juction on 
the right with the Eio das Velhas from the Queluz 
heights near Itacolumi. Below this point, still 1760 



BRAZIL 527 

feet above the sea, the S, Francisco at once becomes 
navigable for large craft, flowing for hundreds of miles 
in a broad deep channel through Minas Geraes to the 
confluence of the Rio Grande, largest of all its numerous 
affluents. Here is presented another of those instances 
of a double incline, which are of more frequent occurrence 
in South America than elsewhere. The Rio Prcto, a 
chief branch of the Eio Grande, is joined in its upper 
valley by the Rio Sa2M0 flowing from a lacustrine basin, 
which communicates on the opposite slope through 
another emissary — the Rio do tiomno — with the right 
bank of the Tocantins above the Araguaya confluence. 
The Somno itself is a considerable stream 250 to 400 
feet wide, and from 5 to 20 feet deep. "The water is 
beautifully clear and transparent, and the scenery of the 
banks is inexpressibly charming. In many places they 
rise up into lofty, many coloured cliffs of sandstone, 
topped with forest, and veiled with trailing, flowering 
vines. In other places the campos extends to ruddy 
banks and white sandy shores, in long slopes of green- 
sward. In the shadowed pools of water at the bends, 
the lovely banks are mirrored as in a looking-glass." ^ 
Thus is presented the phenomenon of a continuous 
natural waterway between the S. Francisco and the 
Amazon basins, similar to the already described con- 
nections between the Amazon, the Orinoco, and the 
Paraguay. 

But these connections occur in flat, low lying districts, 
which were formerly flooded by the Amazonian sea, 
whereas tlie waterway between the S. Francisco and the 
Tocantins traverses an upland tract where most maps show 
a continuous mountain range — the Serra da Tahatinga 
— completely separating the two basins. This range, 

1 Wells, vol. i. p. 193. 



528 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

however, which also takes other fanciful names, has no 
existence, and Mr. Wells, who first made the through 
journey by water, tells us that the divide is nothing 
but " a wide sterile sandy plateau, thinly covered with 
small scrub and tufts of wiry grass. A traveller can 
traverse it in a canoe from Barra do Eio Grande, on the 
S. Francisco, to the mouth of the Rio Somno, on the 
Tocantins. This high plateau, known as the Chapada 
de Mangabeira, extends to 10° S. lat. where it joins a 
similar high flat plateau that forms a horse-shoe in its 
course, and constitutes the watershed of the rivers of 
north-east Brazil" (vol. ii. p. 361). On a properly con- 
structed physical map the whole of this region would 
appear as an island enclosed eastwards by the Atlantic 
and landwards by the Amazon, the Tocantins, the Somno, 
Eio Grande, and Lower S. Francisco. 

Beyond the Rio Grande confluence the S. Francisco 
bends round from north to north-east and east, here 
flowinw between Bahia and Pernambuco, and farther on 
between Sergipe and Alagoas, to the Atlantic, which it 
enters through two branches, both obstructed by bars 
with not more than 9 or 10 feet at low water. But 
about 160 miles higher up the navigation of the S. 
Francisco itself is completely arrested by the tremendous 
Paulo Affonso Falls, the " Niagara of Brazil." Here the 
stream, after winding in a broad channel through quite 
an archipelago of islands, is suddenly contracted to a 
narrow bed scarcely 60 feet wide, and precipitated over 
a rocky ledge to a yawning chasm nearly 300 feet below. 
In the dry season, when the discharge is estimated at 
this point at 35,000 cubic feet per second, the current 
is broken by several projecting rocks, but is merged in a 
single body of water during the floods, when its volume 
rises to probably over 150,000 cubic feet per second. 



BRAZIL 529 

Even below the great tails several other obstructions 
have to be overcome, so that the S. Francisco, which has 
a total length of 1800 miles with a drainage area of 
252,000 square miles, is accessible to sea-going vessels 
only for 135 miles from its mouth. But between the 
Paulo Affonso Falls and the Kio das Velhas junction 
there is a clear navigable stretch of about 1000 miles, 
and nearly 4400 miles including the affluents, many of 
which can be ascended by light craft for some distance 
above their confluences. 

North of the S. Francisco the seaboard is traversed 
by several coast-streams, of which the most important 
is the Parahiba do Norte, which rises with several 
head-streams on the northern slopes of the Serra da 
Barhorema, and flows in a north-easterly direction for 
930 miles between the States of Maranhao and Piauhy 
to the sea, which it enters through a large delta project- 
ing considerably beyond the normal coast-line. Not- 
withstanding its great length and a catchment basin 
nearly 140,000 square miles in extent, the "Bad 
River," as its name is said to mean, is so shallow and 
beset by shoals and reefs as to be scarcely navigable for 
vessels drawing over 5 or 6 feet of water. 

South of the S. Francisco the chief arteries are the 
Pardo and JequitinJionha, which converge in a common 
delta a little north of Porto Seguro ; the Bio Dace, which 
descends from the Serra das Vertentes, and after describ- 
ing a great bend from north to east pierces the Serra dos 
Aimores on its course to the sea above Santa Cruz ; the 
Parahiba do Sul, which rises on the inner slope of the 
Serra do Mar, and after flowing some distance to the 
south, as if to join the Upper Parana, trends round to 
the north-east, and maintains this direction for the rest 
of its course through the State of Eio de Janeiro to the 

VOL. I 2 M 



530 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY Ax\D TRAVEL 

coast above Cape S. Thome ; lastly, the Pdo Jacuhy, which, 
after collecting the drainage of a great part of the State 
of Eio Grande do Sul, enters the Lagoa dos Patos at 
Porto Alegre. 

This extensive coast lagoon appears to take its name 
not from the patos (" ducks ") by which it is frequented, 
but from the now extinct Patos Indians, who formerly 
occupied its shores. It is by far the largest of the chain 
of similar marine formations which fringe the Atlantic 
seaboard all the way from Santa Catharina to Uruguay, 
and are due partly to the action of the waves and cur- 
rents washing up the sands, and partly also perhaps to 
the upheaval of the outer coast-line thus created. Some 
of the lagoons are already completely closed, and their 
waters have become brackish or even fresh, while others 
still communicate with the sea through creeks or shift- 
ing channels often closed in the dry season. The Lagoa 
dos Patos, which has an area of between 3000 and 4000 
square miles, sends its overflow to the Atlantic through 
the permanent outlet of the Bio Grande, just below the 
point where it receives the inflow of the Lagoa Mirim 
on the Uruguay frontier (see p. 419). 

The Jaguarao frontier river, as well as the Upper 
Parana and Paraguay basins lying within Brazilian 
territory, have been described in previous chapters. 



CHAPTEE XV 

BPiAZiL — {continued) 

Climate — Flora — Fauna — Inhabitants — The Aborigines — The Tapuya, 
Tupi-Guarani, Carib, and Arawak I'aniilies— The Brazilian Negroes — 
The Europeans — Topography — Natural Resources — Mining Industry 
• — Agricultural Prospects — Coffee Culture — Stock - Breeding — Forest 
Produce — Railway Enterprise — Trade — Government— Education — 
Finance — Armaments. 

Climate 

In the north Brazil extends at one or two points nearly 
five degrees beyond the equator, and in the south about 
ten beyond the Tropic of Capricorn. But here it con- 
tracts to very narrow limits, so that with the exception 
of the southern section of Parana, Eio Grande do Sul, 
and Santa Catharina, nearly the whole region is com- 
prised within the south torrid zone. As there are, 
moreover, nowhere any alpine heights or snowy moun- 
tains, but only moderately elevated tablelands intersected 
by low ranges or ridges, the climate is on tlie whole 
essentially tropical, modified on the seaboard by marine 
infiuences and in parts of the interior by special local 
conditions. The modifications are, however, greater than 
might be supposed, as may be seen from the remarkable 
deflections of the isothermal lines on recent climato- 
loffical charts. 



532 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Three zones have in fact been distinguished — a 
strictly tropical, comprising the states of Pernambuco, 
Parahiba, Kio Grande do Norte, Ceara, Piauhy, Maranhao, 
Para, Amazonas, and parts of Goyaz and Matto Grosso, 
say, 2,600,000 square miles; a warm or sub-tropical, 
including the northern section of Parana, E,io de Janeiro, 
Santa Catharina, Eio Grande do Sul, and the greater part 
of S. Paulo, with some of the high grounds in Minas 
Geraes, Goyaz, and Matto Grosso, altogether about 
600,000 square miles ; lastly, a temperate zone of perhaps 
100,000 square miles in various parts of the southern 
States. But even here, as well as on the highest sum- 
mits, snow and ice are rare and passing phenomena, 
although 30,000 head of cattle perished of cold in 
the Lages district of Eio Grande do Sul during the 
exceptionally severe winter of 1859. Mild frosts are 
most frequent on Itatiaya, and in the uplands of South 
Minas Geraes the glass stands for about a week at 6° or 
7° Fahr. below freezing-point. The foregoing picture is 
supported by the subjoined returns of the mean annual 
temperature from various parts of Brazil for the year 
1889-90:— 



state. 


Town or District. 


Maranliao . 


. Santa Luz 


Para . 


. Para 


Ceara 


Fortaleza 


? , 


. Quixeramobim 


Matto Grosso 


. Cuyaba . 


Piauhy 


Amarante 


Pernambuco 


. Recife 


Espirito Santo 


. Colonia Izabel 


J J 


Victoria 


,, 


. S. Bento das Lages 


Bahia 


, Bahia 


Minas Geraes . 


Queluz . 


J) 


. Ribeiro Preto . 


R. de Janeiro . 


iSova Friburgo 



Mean 


Temp 


81° 


Fahr. 


79° 




82° 




85° 




79° 




80° 




79° 

74° 
77° 
76° 




79° 

68° 





63° 



BKAZIL 



533 



state. 
R. de Janeiro 

S. Paulo . 



Pai'ana 

Sta. Catliarina 

Parana 

R. Gr. do Sul 



Town or District 
R. de Janeiro 
Santa Cruz 
Casa Branca 
Cascata . 
S. Paulo 
Curitiba . 
Blumenau 
S. Antonio da 
Nova Petropol 
Santa Cruz 
Passo Fundo 
Taquary . 
R. Gr. do Sul 



Palmeira 



Mean Temp. 

74° Fahr. 

70° „ 

74° „ 

64° „ 

62° „ 

64° „ 

70° „ 

64° „ 

66° ,, 

66° „ 

63° ,, 

65° ,, 

66° ,, 



Even the highest of these records do not at first 
sight seem excessive, and in England, a pre-eminently 
temperate region, the thermometer occasionally registers 
80° or more in the shade. But what is here exceptional 
is normal in most parts of Brazil, where it is the per- 
sistence of high temperatures throughout the year, and 
the absence of spring and autumn transitional periods, 
that make the heats so oppressive and exhausting. 
Little relief is obtained even at night, except on the 
Amazon, parts of the seaboard and the extreme south, 
where there is often a range of as much as 20° within 
the twenty-four houi's and from season to season. The four 
seasons, however, are confined to the Almanac, and the 
people themselves recognise only a dry and a wet period, 
the latter lasting generally for two or three months — in 
the south from October to December, in Pernambuco 
from April to June, in Rio de Janeiro formerly from 
November to March, but since the disappearance of 
the forests at no fixed time. In the interior also, and 
especially in the Amazonian lands, it rains through- 
out the year, although even here the distinctly wet 
season is, as a rule, limited to the period from December 
to May. This great excess of moisture, which renders 



534 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

the heats still more unbearable, is due to the Atlantic 
trade-winds, which prevail for a great part of the year, 
and are nowhere intercepted by great mountain barriers. 

But, strange to say, what are chiefly dreaded, especi- 
ally in Ceara and neighbouring lands, are not the rains 
but the droughts, such as that which lasted for four years 
at the close of the eighteenth century, and is not yet 
forgotten. All the live-stock perished, whole districts 
were depopulated, and the survivors were reduced to 
the verge of starvation. Such protracted droughts are 
always possible, and at such times the vegetation itself 
gets L)urnt up, the springs and streams cease to flow, and 
the parched soil gapes with great cracks and fissures. 

On the other hand, the tropical downpours last 
at times for weeks together, and are accompanied by 
tremendous thunder-storms and hurricanes, as in 1817, 
when the ships broke from their moorings and hundreds 
of lives were lost at Eio de Janeiro. From the few 
systematic observations that have been taken the annual 
rainfall rises from 8 or 10 inches on some parts of 
the seaboard to 500 or 600 inches and even upwards in 
some parts of the Amazonian depression. On the coast, 
between Cape Orange and Eio G-rande, the north-east 
winds prevail from September to March, when they are 
succeeded by the south-east trades for the rest of the year. 
But between Cape S. Eoque and the Amazon estuary 
the marine breezes set steadily from the south-south- 
east throughout the year, though they are most felt from 
October to March. Like the pamperos from the south- 
west, they blow at times with great violence, often strew- 
ing the coast with wreckage, but also aiding the naviga- 
tion of the interior, where sailing-vessels easily ascend 
the Amazon, driving before the wind right up to the 
Peruvian frontier. 



BRAZIL 535 

All things considered, the southern provinces are the 
most suited for European settlement. The Minas Geraes 
uplands, about the head-waters of the S. Francisco, are also 
distinctly healthy, and all travellers in these districts 
hear of extraordinary cases of longevity. Mr. H. C. 
Dent, amongst others, was told that " there never was 
any illness, and the people are ver}^ long-lived, often 
attaining a hundred years of age. One old woman living 
near is a hundred and twenty, her husband died many 
years ago at nearly a hundred ; I was shown som& time 
later the portrait of an old negress who lives at Pitaguay, 
named Joanna, who is 127 years old and still does every- 
thing for herself."^ South Goyaz, still farther inland, 
enjoys a similar reputation, and this is one reason why 
it has been proposed to remove the seat of government 
from Eio de Janeiro, in the yellow fever coast zone, to 
the Formosa district in tliat province. But yellow fever 
is largely a question of sanitation, and a crowded city 
like Eio might find itself equally exposed to the plague 
even on the breezy Goyaz uplands. Formerly the whole 
of the interior, and especially the plateaux, were supposed 
to be safe from its attacks. But this delusion was dis- 
pelled by its appearance at Manaos in 1856, and by 
several outbreaks since 1890 at Cantagallo, Campinas, 
and other inland towns. Its range, however, is said 
to be limited vertically to about 2500 feet, no known 
cases having yet occurred on the slopes above that 
altitude. 

Other fevers are endemic in many parts of the 
interior, and several varieties of ague are prevalent along 
the periodically flooded level banks of the S. Francisco 
below the Velhas confluence. But compared with the 
whole region, these fever-stricken districts are of quite 
^ A Year in Brazil, pp. 57, 58. 



536 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

limited extent, although to them Brazil mainly owes its 
undeserved reputation of being an insalubrious land. 
Even the Amazon, flowing almost on the equator, is 
classed as a " white river," and is in any case somewhat 
immune from malaria, being in this respect almost 
comparable to some of the healthy woodlands of the 
Bolivian yungas. It is noteworthy that wherever the 
surface is disturbed by railway cuttings and similar 
works, the operations are usually followed by an out- 
burst of some form of malarious fever. Such was the 
case when the City Improvements Company took Rio in 
hand in 1863-68. 

But the hope that the drainage works then carried 
out would put an end to the constant visitations of 
yellow fever were doomed to disappointment. Rio still 
remains, next to Santos, the chief hot-bed of the pest along 
the whole seaboard. It attacks foreigners, such as ships' 
crews and immigrants, by preference, and Italians were 
the chief victims during the epidemics of 1891-92. It 
rages especially in December and January, and generally 
subsides with the first appearance of cold in May or June, 
hence is essentially a tropical disease, like African fever, 
but of a different character; Brazilian negroes, proof 
against yellow fever, are as subject as Europeans to the 
African varieties, and Sudanese negroes are as liable as 
the white immigrants to the attacks of the American 
" yellow jack." 

N'ext to this disorder the most prevalent is perhaps 
rheumatism, which is said to be in Brazil, as in so many 
other countries, on the increase. Scrofula and other 
skin diseases are widespread, but would appear to be 
mainly confined to the negro and mulatto classes, 
amongst whom they often assume some very repulsive 
forms. The puru-puru variety, however, is peculiar to 



BRAZIL 537 

the Amazonian aborigines, amongst whom small-pox also 
at times makes frightful ravages. 

Flora 

Despite much diversity of form, due to the varying 
conditions of soil, climate, and altitude, the exuberant 
Brazilian vegetable world presents almost everywhere a 
certain uniform south tropical aspect. So vast, however, 
is this botanical field that, even after the protracted 
researches af Humboldt, Bonpland, De CandoUe, Martins, 
Waterton, Spruce, Bates, Wallace, and other eminent 
naturalists, the systematic study of the Brazilian flora is 
still far from exhausted. Extensive districts teeming 
with plant life have never yet been visited, and although 
as many as 22,000 endemic species have already been 
described, no one can say how much there still remains 
to be discovered. In this boundless botanical zone the 
striking features are the primeval woodlands, which still 
cover the Amazonian plains and large tracts of the sea- 
board, and the general aspect of which has already been 
described. A marked peculiarity is the strange absence of 
conifers, the chief exception being the Araucaria hrasili- 
ensis, and even this is mainly confined to the slopes of 
the serras between 18^ and 30° S. lat. It is one of the 
few plants which, like the wax-palm and mate, are of 
sociable habits, forming, especially in the east, extensive 
thickets of uniform and exclusive character. 

Elsewhere the woodlands are peopled by an endless 
diversity of forms, none of which in the struggle for 
existence is able to acquire a marked predominance over 
its rivals ; hence the prodigious variety of species which 
distinguishes this botanical zone beyond all others. 
Thus is presented the most violent contrast between the 



538 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

rich arboreal and parasitic vegetation of the marshy 
Aniazonian lowlands, and the above described monotonous, 
grassy, and scrubby growtlis of the somewhat arid campos 
region. But it has been calculated that the wooded 
lowlands comprise only about one-third, and the far less 
productive campos districts of the central uplands half as 
much again of the whole land, and it is this consideration 
that has to be borne in mind when reading the current 
glowing accounts of the " unlimited resources of the 
Brazilian republic." Under the term " campos," however, 
are comprised many tracts which differ considerably in 
their main features, and are locally known Ijy distinctive 
names, which, being little understood elsew^iere, have 
tended to create the confused and erroneous impressions 
still prevalent regarding the true character of the greater 
part of this region. Hence some of those in more general 
use are here subjoined and defined : — 

Campos geraes, "general campos," the interminable level or slightly 

rolling tracts under short coarse herbage, where the nionotonoiis 

landscape is seldom relieved by any conspicuous object. 

Campos ahertos 1 , ., , 

r, J (described at p. 502. 

Campos cerraaos J ^ 

Campos veros, "true campos," grassy, treeless and waterless plateaux. 

Campos agrestes, " rough campos," where coarse tufty herbage of grayish 

colour prevails. 
Campos mimosas, "tender campos," under soft, fresh, bright green 

pasturage, suitable for cattle-runs. 
Taboleiras, " platters," very flat and di'y herbaceous plains. 
Cliapadas, " high ground," applied vaguely to elevated plateaux, low 

ridges or serras traversing the campos. 
Sertoes, " backwoods," a term of universal use, not everywhere suggestive 

of woodlands, but rather of waste lands of any kind — a wilderness ; 

applied in a general way both to the taboleiras and the chapadas. 

The wide use of tliis word points at the really burren or unproductive 

character of a great part of the central uplands. 
Capoes, "thickets," patches of low growth, especially palms, in the 

more humid parts of the grassy campos, lending variety and charm to 

the landscape. 



BRAZIL 539 

Carrascos, " scrub," brushwood. 

Serradoes, "high woods," stunted wooded tracts on the drj', niii)ro- 
ductive uplands. 

Charneca, "heath," applied to scrubby open tracts forming a transition 
from the caiTascos to the sertoes. 

Catingas ~> extensive open woodlands of small growth and with much 

Mato daro /underwood, affording cover to all kinds of animals. 

Oapoeira, "after-growths," the jungle that springs up with surpris- 
ing rapidit}' in the abandoned clearings of the primeval forest, where 
are always found some species different from those uprooted. 

In the virgin forests as many as 120 species have 
already been discovered, which are of distinct economic 
value — alimentary, medicinal, rubber -yielding, useful 
for building, cabinet-work, weaving, netting, plait- 
ing, and other practical purposes. In this respect no 
land can compare with Brazil, just as no other tree in the 
whole world can compare with the Brazilian wax-palm 
(Co]:iernici(' cerifera), the carnahuha of the natives. This 
marvellous tree, which has a wide range in the north- 
eastern States, seems to concentrate in itself half of the 
properties of the vegetable kingdom. " It resists intense 
droughts, and is always green and vigorous. Its roots 
produce the same medicinal effects as sarsaparilla ; its 
stem affords strong, light fibres, which acquire a beautiful 
lustre, and serves also for joists and other building- 
materials. From parts of the tree wine and vinegar are 
made ; it yields also a saccharine substance, as well as a 
starch resembling sago. Its fruit is used for feeding 
cattle ; the pulp has an agreeable taste, and the nut is 
sometimes used as a substitute for coffee. Of the wood 
of the stem musical instruments, water-tubes, and pumps 
are made ; the pith is an excellent substitute for cork ; 
from the stem a white liquid similar to the milk of the 
coconut, and a flour resembling maizena may be extracted. 
Of the straw, hats, baskets, brooms, and mats are made ; 
salt is extracted from it, and an alkali used in the manu- 



540 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

facture of soap ; but the most valuable product is the 
wax obtained from its leaves."^ 

Amongst the highly oleaginous plants growing wild 
are the coconut palm ; Attalea com'pta, whose oil surpasses 
that of the olive ; Gocos gommosa ; Cocos coronata ; Copa- 
Iiiba; Bicinus communis ; Sapucainha, jielding a, highlj- 
prized odoriferous oil ; Carapa guianensis, whose olea- 
ginous seeds are the Andiroba of commerce. Even more 
important is the gummiferous and resinous family, 
including the Seringeira (Siphonia elastica), foremost of 
the rubber-yielding plants ; the Manga heira {Hancornia 
speciosa) ; Agoniada (Flumeria laTicifolia) and Jatoha 
{JSymencea courhar%l),ixQim. which is extracted copal varnish. 
Chief of the dyewoods are the Fau Brazil {Caesalpinia 
echinata), of historic interest (see p. 52); dragon's blood 
(Croton erythrina) ; Carajuru {Bignonia chica) ; Anil 
(Indigofera and Cissus Tinctoria) ; tagatiba {Madura 
affinis) ; red mangrove {Bhizophora mangle) ; various 
kinds of indigo and urucu {Bixa orellana), and Genipa 
americana, from the berries of which the natives obtain 
the blue-black dye used in tattooing. Highly fragrant 
aromatic essences are extracted from many plants, such 
as Baunilha {Vanilla), which was found by Von den 
Steinen to range far into Matto Grosso about the head- 
waters of the Xingu. The hundreds of indigenous, medi- 
cinal, aromatic, and alimentary plants, such as sarsaparilla, 
ipecacuanha, sapucaya, Brazil or Para nuts, guava, 
passion-flower fruit, cashu, cassava, maiz, tobacco, cacao, 
have been increased by cinnamon from Ceylon, nutmeg 
and other spices from the Moluccas, pepper from 
Jamacia, and bananas from Africa. Of this valuable 
plant there are in Brazil two species, Musa paradisiaca 
and Mtisa sapientium, the latter still often called S. 

1 T. L. Thompson, The Forum, March 1898. 



BRAZIL 541 

Thome banana, because introduced from that West African 
island in the sixteenth century. But of all such immi- 
grants the most valuable are the sugar-cane and the 
coffee shrub, which have here found congenial homes, 
and are now amongst the chief sources of the national 
wealth. 

A curiosity of the Brazilian flora is the tree-lily ( Vel- 
lozia), locally called Ganella d'Ema. It flourishes in the 
Campos geraes of Piauhy and Goyaz, and is noted for the 
lovely " mauve-coloured flowers at the end of each branch. 
In form the plant resembles a candelabra, but in com- 
position no production of the vegetable world. The 
branches and stem consist, as it were, of a number of 
deep cups placed one within the other, strung upon a 
hard and tough pithy stem that runs through the 
centre " (Wells, vol. ii. p. 123). There are several known 
species, usually 4-5 feet high, and one in the Sapao 
valley about double that size. 

Fauna 

As already remarked, many of the Brazilian animals 
have acquired, or else further developed, climbing habits. 
This is specially true of the apes, who belong exclusively 
to the platyrhine (broad-nose) family, and are endowed 
with prehensile tails, a feature by which the American 
monkeys are strikingly distinguished from those of the 
Old World. But prehensile extremities are also pos- 
sessed by many other denizens of the woodlands, — rats, 
mice, porcupines, sloths, frogs, lizards, and even some of 
the larger carnivora, besides many of the bird tribe. In 
this class the parrot family is as largely represented as is 
that of the apes amongst the mammals, whence the ex- 
pressions " parrot land " and " ape land " concurrently 



542 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TKAVEL 



applied to the whole region. But perhaps with more 
justice it might be called the " insect land," for nowhere 
else is there found such an infinite variety of these low 
organisms, ranging from the largest and most resplendent 
butterflies and beetles down to the tiniest and most 



-^ '\. 



^? 










YELLOW-TAILKD HOWLEll AND YOUNG. 



ferocious ants, jiggers, mosquitoes, ticks, carrupatos and 
otlier equally pestilent Mchos. In Brazil all noxious 
creatures, every dreaded or despised thing, or whatever 
no other name can be found for at the moment, are 
" bichos," properly grubs, but in general all kinds of 
pests and vermin, big and little, for which this region, 



BRAZIL 543 

for reasons already explained, can hold its own against the 
world. 

Three zoological zones have been distinguished, — the 
wooded eastern coast-lands, the central canipos, and 
Amazonia. Here the main stream itself forms a sort of 
parting-line between the southern forms, ranging from its 
right bank nearly to the Plate estuary, and the northern, 
amongst which Central American types are numerous if 
not dominant. But the huge beasts so widely diffused 
in Tertiary times have disappeared, and in Brazil, as in 
other parts of the New World, no mammals have sur- 
vived larger than the juguar, puma, peccary, tapir, capy- 
bara, the aquatic manatee and the howling ape. 

Of apes large and small there are over fifty species, 
all except ten confined to the northern zone. The 
howlers, most characteristic of all, are of socialjle habits, 
and would seem to have developed a kind of tribal 
organisation under a chief howler. It is his office to 
lead the concert of dismal music, which is unlike that of 
any other animal, and is heard miles away about dawn 
and sunset. The group seldom leaves the tree where it 
has taken up its abode, holding on by their tails even 
when drinking. The harhados, " bearded," as the Brazi- 
lians call them, are the least tameable of all beasts, and 
even the Indians, who contrive to make pets or com- 
panions of most animals, never succeed in striking up a 
fellowship with a howler. Less known, although larger 
than this tribe, is the huriquivi (Ateles arachnoides), of 
which there are four varieties ranging as far south as 
S. Paulo, and one, the miriki, is quite 3 feet high. But 
for sagacity and cunning the coati of Amazonia has 
no rival, and may also easily be domesticated. The 
natives, however, prefer the harrigtido or woolly ape 
{Lagothrix), whom they call the midcque, or " little black," 



544 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

and whose air of comical gravity, coiubiued with his 
strikingly hmnan features, is highly amusing. Very 
attractive are also the Capuchine monkeys (Cehus 
monachus), and the pretty little marmosets, who form a 




MARMOSETS. 



sort of link between the monkey and the squirrel, and of 
whom as many as fourteen species have been described. 

Even more numerous is the tribe of bats and vampires, 
comprising twenty-four known species, the largest of 
which, the true vampire {Phyllostovia Sj)ecfrnvi), is 6 
inches long and 2 feet from tip to tip of its leathern 
wings. In Ceara and some other districts these blood- 
thirsty creatures commit serious ravages amongst the 



BRAZIL 545 

cattle, and they swarm to such an extent in the caves 
of Minas Geraes and the Sapao valley, that, to believe 
the natives, " it is there impossible for any animal to live 
through the night " (Wells, vol. ii. p. 116). On the other 
hand, the Carnivora are not so numerous as might be 
supposed from the apparently splendid cover afforded by 
the boundless woodlands. But here most of their natural 
prey have taken to the trees, while the dark and gloomy 
recesses of the forests are not the most suitable environ- 
ment for large animal life (see p. 21). The largest are 
the jaguar, here everywhere called an ounce {Felis onza), 
and the kuguar or puma {Felis concolor), both members 
of the cat family, of which there are altogether six 
species, distinguished chiefly by their size, the colour and 
markings of their coats. Thus there are the " spotted 
ounce," and the " black ounce," and some of these felines 
are said to be as large as an ox of moderate size. The 
domestic cat is noted for its long legs and ears, as in 
Greece. 

The canine group, as mostly in the New World, is 
poorly represented in Brazil, which has little to show 
except the loho {Canis juhatus), the Brazilian dog {C. 
Irasiliensis), and a fox-like animal (C. vetulus) met only 
in the Campos. All have in common a great dread of 
man, and even the lobo (literally " wolf ") never ventures 
to infest human habitations. On the coast-lands, and 
especially about the river mouths, is often seen the South 
American raccoon {Procyon cancrivorus), which is about 
the size of a setter, and has the curious habit of dipping 
its food in water before eating it. More widely diffused 
is the coati, of which there are two species, Nasua 
socialis, living together in large connnunities, and JV. 
soUtaria, found only in couples. Still more numerous 
are the marsupial opossums, of which there are tw^o 

VOL. I 2 N 



.46 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



chief groups {Didelphys and Chironectes), with as luuiiy 
as twelve species, varying from the size of a small mouse 
to that of a large cat, and generally with long noses and 
ears, and prehensile tails. 

In Brazil the rodents are well represented ; of the 
porcupine family alone there are six varieties, all climbers 
with prehensile tails, while the equally numerous cavies 
(Cavia paca) are of almost amphibious habits. They are 
excellent swimmers, and much hunted, their flesh being 
esteemed a great delicacy. It would be difficult to 




imagine a more lively scene than a paca hunt, in which 
old and young take part, some with their dogs ashore, 
others afloat in canoes armed with long bamboos used as 
fishing-rods. " A splash in front of us, — a paca has just 
taken a header into the river, — another and another and 
another ; now several dark spots appear above the water, 
more and yet more, the stream is alive with swimming 
pacas. Now the long bamboos come into play ; one is 
seized like a fishing-rod, and the hook at the end is 
adroitly hooked into the neck of the nearest paca, and 
drawn towards the canoe. More pacas slip or run down 



BRAZIL 



54^ 



the bank, driven by the yelping dogs. Standing np in 
the canoe, out of five shots I bag two of the animals. 
The others scatter in various directions, chiefly down 
stream towards the opposite shore " (Wells, vol. i. p. 191). 
Of the edentates there are three families — the sloth 
with two genera {Brady pus tridactylus andi>V. turqaatus) ; 
the armadillo with six species, one as large as a half- 
o-rown hog ; and the ant-eater, with two genera, one very 







large {Myrmecophaga juhata), frequenting the campos, the 
other much smaller (i£ tetradactyla), a denizen of the 
woodlands. But for these armadillos and ant-eaters, who 
help to keep down the teeming insect life of the land, 
Brazil would be scarcely inhabital^le by man. 

Four species of the deer tribe, all called Guazu 
("Great"), have been described — Guazu fiieu {Cervvspalu- 
dosus), whose home is about the streams of the marshy 
woodlands ; Guazu-y (C. campestris), confined to the 



548 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Campos; Guazu-pUa (C. rufus), the Brazilian roe; and 
(iuazu-lira {0. simplicicornis). The first alone bears 
laro-e antlers, and the flesh of none is esteemed Ity the 
natives. 

Besides the tapir, largest of all Brazilian mammals. 




THE latEAT AKT- EATER. 



the Pachy derma ta are represented by two species of the 
peccary^ — IHcotyles lalnatus or white-lipped, and D. 
torquatus or collared peccary. The former associates in 
droves of from forty to sixty, is very fierce, and will not 



BKAZIL 549 

hesitate to attack the hunter, nearly always witli fatal 
results unless he can take refuge in time in the branches 
of a tree. The liesh of both is prized, although the 
gland in the middle of the back secretes a musky substance 
which taints the meat if not speedily removed after 
capture. The tapir ranges in America from the United 
States to Patagonia, and was formerly widespread over 
both hemispheres, but now survives elsewhere only in 
Sumatra. In the Amazon are met two kinds of aquatic 
mammals — the lamantin or manatee {Vacca marina), 
often 9 or 10 feet long, and the hoto or honto, a fresh- 
water dolphin (Delphinus amazonicns), about 6 feet long. 
Both are hunted, like the whale, with harpoons, the 
former for its flesh, which is said to taste like pork, and 
also for its blubber, from wiiich as much as 25 gallons 
of train-oil may be obtained. 

Ornithologists have already enumerated nearly 1700 
species of Brazilian birds, many of which are noted for 
their lovely forms and gorgeous iridescent plumage. In 
these respects nothing in nature can surpass the beautiful 
little humming-birds, which flash like sunbeams in the 
woods, in the campos, and in private gardens. Of the 
390 species already described probably about 200 are 
found in Brazil, and amongst these are the Lo'phornis 
ornata and the Choysolamjns moschitus, perhaps the 
loveliest members of the whole family. Another species, 
the Macroglossum, bears such an extraordinary resem- 
blance to the moth of like name, that even educated 
whites firmly believe that one is transformed into the 
other. 

The toucan tribe has also numerous representatives, 
all noted for the apparently disproportionate size of their 
beaks, the explanation of which is given by Bates : 
" Flowers and fruits on the crowns of the large trees of 



550 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

South American forests grow principally towards the 
end of slender twigs, which will not bear any considerable 
weight," so that the length of its beak enables the toucan 
to " reach and devour immense quantities of fruit while 
seated, and thus its heavy body and gluttonous appetite 
form no obstacles to the prosperity of the species." ^ 
Many of the Brazilian birds are endowed with soft 
melodious notes, and these are classed as warblers {Canorce), 
of which Burmeister reckons 133 species. The same 
naturalist enumerates 185 croakers and 82 screamers, 
the noisiest of all being the parrots, which fly about in 
large flocks like our crows, are never at rest, and on the 
least pretext raise a concert of the most ear-splitting 
shrieks. 

It is remarkable that there are no birds of passage, 
although some groups seem now and then to migrate 
from east to west, or from west to east, apparently in 
quest of food. Carrion and other carnivorous birds are 
represented by 23 species of falcons, 8 of owls, and 3 or 
4 of vultures, including the king vulture, and the thievish 
Urubu {Cathartes hrasiliensis). Of the latter Bates writes 
that they are always loafing about and watching their 
opportunity, and the instant the kitchen is left unguarded 
" the bold marauders march in and lift the lids of the 
saucepans with their beaks to rob them of their contents " 
(vol. i. p. 296). 

As in the Orinoco, the sand-banks of the Amazon and 
its tributaries are frequented by myriads of turtles, some 
over 3 feet long and proportionately wide. They yield 
vast quantities of excellent food, while from their eggs 
is prepared a " butter," which is highly esteemed. Un- 
fortunately they are preyed upon by so many enemies 
that their numbers are sensiljly diminishing, and the 
^ The Naturalid on the River Amazon, vol. i. p. 344. 



BRAZIL 551 

Indian saying that " there are more turtles in the Amazon 
than mosquitoes in the air" no longer holds good. Of 
the eight species of ymari (alligator) the largest is the 
yacar4-guazu {Caiman niger), which sometimes measures 
26 or 27 feet in length, and abounds especially in the 
Para waters. Not more than a dozen of the 48 or 50 
species of snakes are really dangerous. One of the 
largest is the boa constrictor, which attains a length of 
30 or 32 feet, but is not poisonous. It frequents the 
recesses of the rocks in dry, sunny districts, and is much 
less dreaded than the water boa {Boa aquatica), which 
grows to a larger size and is even said to swallow horses 
and oxen. 

Amongst the venomous species are the ubiquitous 
rattle-snake, confined, however, in Brazil to the open 
Campos districts, and the even more dreaded and wide- 
spread Jararaca {Bothrops leucurus). Still more numerous 
are the batrachians — toads and frogs in endless variety, 
of all sizes and colours, swarming on land and water, in 
the marshy depressions, and on the highest trees. Some 
of the latter have a metallic note like the hammering 
of half a dozen blacksmiths, while the croaking of others 
is an almost infallible warning of rain. 

The teeming insect life, to which reference was above 
made, is almost rivalled by that of the marine and fresh 
waters. In the Amazon basin alone there are over 
1800 distinct species, chiefly of the families of the 
Siluridce, Salmonidce, and Lahridm. One of the most 
widespread is the ferocious piranha, of which there are 
several varieties, varying from 4 to 14 inches in length. 
It is the same as the Caribe of the Orinoco (see p. 98), 
only if possible more voracious and destructive, readily 
attacking boas and alligators, and reducing horses or 
oxen to a skeleton in a few minutes. 



552 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Strange to say, many of the Brazilian fishes, unlike 
the birds, are migratory, multitudes passing in a certain 
established order to the flooded tracts in the rainy 
season, and returning in spring to their accustomed 
haunts in the rivers. On these occasions myriads fall 
an easy prey to the herons, cormorants, gulls, falcons, 
and alligators that gather for the feast on the banks of 
the streams, without, however, perceptibly diminishing 
their numbers. Many, such as the huge pirarucu {Sudis 
gigas), the pirarara, the sorumhin, the 2^'^'>^'f'nambu, and 
the piranha itself, are edible, and one of the most 
interesting sights in the large towns is the fish-market, 
every visit to which reveals some fresh member of the 
finny tribe. 

Inhabitants — The Aborigines 

It was above seen that the present peoples of Brazil 
represent three original stocks — the American, the Negro, 
and the Caucasic — some still preserving their racial 
purity, but the great majority merged in the general 
population, which must on the whole be regarded as the 
least homogeneous in Latin America. In general the 
aborigines, of whom over 160 " nations " were enumerated 
at the time of the discovery, have withdrawn inland and 
up-stream from the seaboard, where they now survive 
chiefly as one of the constituent elements of the settled 
and civilised inhabitants. The descendants of those who 
escaped destruction in the early wars, or absorption by 
the first settlers, now form two distinct social groups — 
the Indios hravos, that is, the still independent wild 
tribes, and the Indios mansos, that is, the " tame," or 
reduced and more or less civilised natives, who live in 
fixed settlements (the military colonies and the aldea- 
mentos oi' village communities in the neighbourhood of 



BRAZIL 553 

the settled parts), profess the Eoinan Catholic religion, 
speak the lingoa geral, and perhaps a little Portuguese 
here and there, and begin to regard themselves as 
Brazilian citizens. 

Jointly the two groups may be estimated at about 
800,000, and of these some 300,000 may be classed as 
bravos. They still occupy nearly one-half of the whole 
land, but are concentrated chiefly along the Amazonian 
river-banks, and about the sources of the great affluents. 
Although no longer raided or otherwise molested by the 
whites, they are everywhere melting away, victims of 
small-pox and other epidemics, and of " fire-water," as 
well as of the changed economic conditions. Their 
hunting and fishing preserves are continually encroached 
upon, while those who had reached the agricultural state 
are crowded out of their cultivated lands, and thus lapse 
again into the condition of mere savages, for whom there 
is no hope since the cessation of the former processes of 
assimilation by alliances between the two races. 

Nor do the mansos fare very well at the hands of 
the military and other officials, who are supposed to 
continue the civilising work of the Jesuits in the former 
missions. They no longer receive such useful instruction 
as they are capable of understanding ; no attempt is 
made to control or guide them, to restrain their vicious 
tendencies and especially their passion for ardent spirits, 
or to encourage those indunstrious habits for which many 
of the old communities were distinguished. The ad- 
ministrators of the aldeamentos usually consist of a 
director, a missionary, and an intrepreter, supported by 
a small armed force of negroes or mulattoes in uniform. 
But the director is mostly an " absentee," who rarely 
applies the Government subsidies to the moral and 
general education of the Indians in the way intended by 



554 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



the authorities. In fact, little is done for their benefit, 
except by some of the padres who, faithful to their trust, 
endeavour to continue the on the whole beneficent work 
of the Jesuits. 



The Tapuya, Tupi-G-uarani, Carib, and Arawak Families 

Some fresh light has been thrown on the ethnical 
relations of the Brazilian aborigines by the researches 

of Von den Steinen, 
Ehreureich, Coudreau, 
and others about the 
liead-waters of the 
Amazonian attluents. 
After the failures of 
D'Orbigny, Spix, and 
Martins and other emi- 
nent anthropologists, 
all further attempts 
to group them accord- 
ing to their physical 
characters must be 
abandoned, at least 
for the present. But, 
from the materials col- 
lected, especially by 
the Von den Steinen 

KAYA?0. 

expedition m the 
central parts about the sources of the Xingu and other 
lar<^e rivers, ethnologists have been able to estal)lish 
four great linguistic families — Tapuya, Tupi-Guarani, 
Carib, and Arawak — which, at least to some extent, 
correspond with the physical differences. 

The Tapuya domain, which orginally extended from 




BKAZIL 



1 5 



the seaboard inland to and l)eyond the Tocantins basin, 
comprises two sub-groups — the (Jrs in the west, incbiding 
the Ki(ray<is, Knyapos, and Sujias of the rivers Xingu and 
Araguaya, and the Ainwrcs {Botocudos) and others now 
mainly confined to the coast ranges. At the discovery 
the innumerable Tupi tril)es were in possession of the 
coast-lands between the Amazon and Plate estuaries, 
from whicli they have 
since mostly with- 
drawn, some up the 
Amazon as fiir as 
the Peruvian frontier, 
others to the central 
plateaux already held 
by tribes of the kin- 
dred Guarani stock. 
Hence, liesides those 
elsewhere described in 
Argentina, Uruguiiy, 
and I*araguay, others 
are also met about the 
upper courses of the 
Xingu, Tapajos, Ma- 
deira, and as far west mi u \ 
as the Marahon. Such 

are the Coromas and Omagnas of the Purus and 
Marahon ; the Gvunri/os of the Upper Guapore : the 
Mundrvrns of the Middle Amazon, the Apiacas of the 
Paranatinga ; the Yurunas and 3fanitsmvas of the 
Xingu, and many others. 

The Caribs, hitherto supposed to be confined to 
Venezuela, Guiana, and the Antilles, have now been met 
in the very heart of the Continent, where they are repre- 
sented by the IMa'iri and JVtdi'mpoi.^ of the V\^])eY 




556 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Xingu. As the Carib speech of these groups is of 
archaic type, and their culture also extremely rude and 
primitive, the inference seems reasonable that here is to 
be souirht the Carib cradle-land, as is moreover indicated 
by the traditions of the tribes themselves. The first 
migratory movements would therefore appear to have 
been from Central Brazil to Guiana and the Antilles, 

and not, as hither- 
to generally assumed, 
from the Antilles 
southwards. 

On the other hand, 
the Arawak race would 
now seem to have orig- 
inated in the north, 
and to have spread 
thence over the Or- 
inoco and Amazon 
basins. Besides the 
well - known northern 
groups — Maypures, 
Atorais, Wapisianas, 
and others — many 
kindred tribes have 
now been met far to the south and west. Siich are the 
Piros of the Ucayali, the Miranhas of the Jurua, the 
Canamaris of the Purus, the Manaos of the Eio Negro, 
the Custenrnis, Vaurds, Mehinakus, and Yaualajjiti of the 
Xingu, and the Guanas on the left bank of the Upper 
Paraguay. 

Amid much uniformity and even sameness, two some- 
what marked physical types can still be distinguished 
in these multifarious ethnical groups. While some have 
short thick-set figures, broad and rather fiat features, 




BliAZIL 



retreating forehead, prominent cheek-bones, ^^lightly 
oblique eyes, small nose, depressed at the root, and light 
yellowish-brown complexion, others are noted for their tall, 
slim, and sometimes heavy forms, straight eyes set in 
well-rounded and high -arched sockets, large, straight or 
even aquiline nose, more regular oval features, reddish- 
brown colour, brighter and more animated expression. 
The former present at 
times a startling re- 
semblance to the Asia- 
tic Mongol, the latter 
to the Caucasic Eur- 
opean, and thus the 
two types of primitive 
man, the long and 
round-headed revealed 
l)y the fossil skulls of 
Minas Geraes and Ar- 
gentina, would seem to 
be still represented in 
the present aboriginal 
populations of Brazil. 

But during the 
countless ages that 
they have been thrown together in an isolated and 
relatively narrow region of the glol)e, there have 
been overlappings and interminglings, resulting in a 
general uniformity both of the physical and mental 
characters, as reflected especially in the long, black, 
lank hair, and the polysynthetic speech, which are the 
common inheritance of all alike. Although no large 
political states had anywhere been developed, so that 
we cannot speak in Brazil as on the Andean plateau, of 
great nations, but only of tribes, clans, and even family 




NAHUQUA. 



558 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

groups, there have nevertheless been widespread move- 
ments, friendly associations or hostile clashings, invasions 
and conquests, as shown by the great predominance of 
some linguistic families over others. Thus the Guarani- 
Tupi stock language, which probably orginated about the 
Middle Parana and Upper Uruguay basins, had already 
reached the seaboard and was elsewhere widely diffused 
long before the arrival of the whites, and consequently 
long before the idiom was selected by the Jesuits as the 
general medium of intercourse in all the missions. They 
took the instrument best suited for their purpose, and 
that such an instrument was available is of itself sufficient 
proof that there had been in remote times shiftings and 
interchanges of speech between tribes of different origin, 
and it is this fact that, as above seen, makes it so 
difficult or impossible any longer to classify the Brazilian 
aborigines on other than a linguistic basis. 

To migratory movements and interminglings may also 
partly be due the similarity in the usages of so many of 
the wild tribes, although common practices, social habits 
and even religious ideas are often best explained by the 
common nature of tlie physical surroundings. Most of 
them have ceased to be nomads in the strict sense of the 
term, and although still mainly hunters and fishers, they 
now also cultivate a little land in the forest glades. They 
generally go naked, and build round huts of palm foliage, 
which, however, contain few household utensils besides 
the hammocks often neatly arranged round the sides. 

In the camping-grounds are generally seen some of 
the native animals, whom they show great skill in taming, 
but never any of the European domestic animals, except 
the horse amongst some of the steppe tribes, although to 
the indigenous crops, such as manioc and maize, they have 
added beans, bananas, ground nuts and a few other 



BKAZIL 559 

exotics. All have a knowledge of lire, produced by 
friction and used solely for cooking purposes. It is note- 
worthy that all the boiling is done by the women, and 
the roasting and braizing by the men, the explanation 
probably being that the former process was a female 
invention, suggested by the forms of the gourds, after- 
wards imitated in clay, whereas roasting resulted from- 
the experience acquired when hunting. In the embers 
of the fires kindled to scare wild beasts are often found 
the remains of small animals, fruits and roots " done to 
a turn." But the men alone join in the chase, and to 
them alone would thus be reserved the privilege of pre- 
paring the produce of the hunt in a similar way. 

Although living on the banks of navigable waters, 
some of the tribes have never invented even a raft, while 
others make excellent bark canoes and dug-outs, used 
both for fishing and piracy, and in recent times also for 
trading purposes. The weapons are almost everywhere 
the same — bow and arrow, a formidable club of black 
palm-wood, a red-wood battle-axe, spears or darts and 
blow-pipes. The last mentioned, also of palm-wood, are 
usually nine or ten feet long, with little ten or twelve 
inch darts, tipped like the arrows in the potent curari 
poison, not however universally, but only amongst some 
of the Amazonian tribes. The effect of this virus on the 
human system is most remarkable, and can be explained 
only on the assumption that it attacks, not the sensory 
but the motor nerves, the consequence being that, while 
the patient still feels, he is powerless to make any 
response to outward stimulus. But death soon ensues, 
apparently from paralysis of the respiratory organs. 
There is also a kind of sling with which stones and hard 
clay balls are hurled from a little net, and turtles are 
taken with barbed darts or harpoons. 



560 



COMPENDIUM OF OEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



All delight in personal ornaments or what they 
regard as such. The chief adornments are feather-work, 
coloured stones, shells, the claws and teeth of wild 
beasts, glass beads obtained by barter, painting with 
ochres and vegetable dyes, wooden or bone labrets aiid 
ear-plugs, but not tattooing except amongst the Mun- 
drucus and a few others. Cannibalism, formerly wide- 
spread, still survives 
here and there amongst 
the Amazonian and 
perhaps some of the 
hill tribes near the 
seaboard. Such are, 
or were till lately, 
the Botocudos of the 
Aimoras range, who 
are also noted for the 
enormous size of their 
lip and ear ornaments, 
round wooden discs 
two to three inches in 
diameter. The Boto- 
cudos are amongst the 
rudest and most primi- 
tive of all peoples, and 
were long regarded and treated hj the white settlers 
rather as wild beasts than as human beings. To exter- 
minate them recourse was even had to the artificial 
spread of small-pox, everything being considered lawful 
to get rid of such " vermin." The Botocudos have thus 
lieen cleared from the plains, but several groups still hold 
their ground about the head-waters of the Eio Dulce. 

Cannibals also are certainly the much dreaded Ifira- 
nhas, who roam the region between the Putumayo and 




EOROKO OF CENTKAL BRAZIL. 



BEAZIL 561 

the Japura, and are recognised by their pecuhar nose 
ornament, — two large shell buttons let into slits in the 
middle of the nostrils. Still more formidable are the 
Mundrucus, the Faiguizd or " Head-cutters " of their 
neighbours, who occupy a considerable domain along the 
south bank of the Amazon and thence inland between 
the Eios Madeira and Tapajos. Estimates of their 
number range from 15,000 or 20,000 to 40,000; but 
all agree that they are on the wane, wdiich need not be 
regretted in the case of ferocious savages, of whom Cou- 
dreau, their last observer, declared that they knew neither 
right nor honourable warfare, but only " murder pure and 
simple." Amongst them the rank of chief (hichawa) is 
not hereditary but obtained by personal prowess, proved 
by the capture of at least ten heads, which are mummified 
by a drying process and then worn as trophies, just as 
the Eed Indians wore the scalps of the slain in battle. 
They are also amongst the tribes who kill and sometimes 
eat the infirm and aged, in order thus to spare them a 
lingering death and burial in the cold ground, or, as 
others report, to prevent waste of good food. But 
accounts differ, and some even declare that the Mun- 
drucus are noted for their honesty, as well as for the 
gentle manners, brightness and vivacity of their women. 
In any case a more pleasant picture is presented by 
the Guanas and others of Matto Grosso, who are not 
only skilful boat-builders and stOck-breeders but also 
raise excellent crops, spin, weave, and dye their cotton 
fabrics, and have learnt from the negroes how to treat 
the sugar-cane. 

The Brazilian Negroes 

Brazil has to thank this sugar industry, even more 
than its mineral wealth, for the large percentage of black 
VOL. I 2 



562 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

blood that has entered into the composition of her in- 
habitants. Their approximate numbers and distribution 
have already been given, and here the essential point to 
note is that all have been absolutely free citizens of the 
republic since the final extinction of slavery in 1888. 
As indicated by their local collective names, they came 
originally for the most part from the Portuguese West 
African possessions of Angola {Nagoa Negroes) and 
Upper Guinea, of which the capital was Elmina {Mina 
Negroes). The hot moist climate, especially of the 
plantation districts, suited them admirably, and, as they 
were on the whole treated with great humanity by their 
employers, they throve as a race in their new Brazilian 
homes. Here, for better for worse, they are permanently 
established, and although there is no political or social 
negro question in Brazil, where all enjoy complete equality, 
and where even racial prejudices exist only in a very 
mild form, there is none the less an ethnical problem 
now in process of slow solution. This problem, which 
cannot here be further discussed, may be thus formulated. 
How will the destiny of the land be ultimately affected 
by the complete fusion of tlie American, the African, 
and the European elements in the most thickly peopled 
if not the richest section of the republic ? 

It should be noticed that by the emancipation all 
further importation of Africans has been arrested, and 
that the males have from the first considerably out- 
numbered the females, while the defective statistics seem 
to show that amongst the blacks the mortality is in 
excess of the birth-rate. The mulattoes, however, are 
certainly increasing in numbers, although the pure whites 
tend to gain the upper hand both socially and politically. 

Slavery was not abolished by a stroke of the pen, as 
in the British Empire, but by a gradual process in terms 



BRAZIL 563 

of the law of September 28, 1871, which emancipated 
all children born in and after 1872, and enabled all 
others to purchase their freedom for sums varying from 
£90 to £110. At that time the servile class numbered 
about 1,610,000, and they had fallen to 600,000 in 
1888, when by a special enactment all were henceforth 
declared free, without compensation to the owners. 

These steps naturally resulted here as elsewhere in a 
disturbance of the social relations down to the lowest 
strata. The indolent freedmen, disliking work except 
under compulsion, at first declined all engagements, 
became idle loafers, and found many sentimental sym- 
pathisers to encourage and even give them a little help 
to play that role. Then these got tired and the negroes 
got hungry, and so things have begun to right themselves. 
They now readily accept employment as gardeners, day 
labourers, domestic servants, and especially porters in the 
large cities, their brawny frames being well suited for 
such work. At best overgrown children, with all their 
faults and good qualities, they are naturally loyal, and 
soon become attached to those employers who treat them 
well. But all do not treat them well, and so many leave 
their places, spend their earnings in dissipation, and 
w^hen driven to extremities enlist in such numbers that 
whole battalions in the Brazilian army consist of blacks, 
always brave and amenable to discipline. 

Others hang about the skirts of society, swell the 
ranks of the criminal classes, and to them has been at- 
tributed the steady increase of burglaries and other deeds 
of violence in all the large towns. Much injury has also 
been inilicted on the coffee industry in S. Paulo since 
the cessation of slave labour. Here were employed about 
100,000 blacks, nearly all of whom at once "struck 
work," and returned to their old homes in the north- 



564 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TPvAVEL 

eastern states. They have, however, now been largely 
replaced by whites on the co-operative principle, which 
has been introduced with some success since the abolition 
of the empire. 

The Europeans 

A sharp distinction is drawn by the whites between 
the Fllho do Beino (" Son of the Kingdom "), that is, the 
native of Portugal, Madeira or the Azores, and the Filho 
da Terra (" Son of the Soil "), that is, the Brazilian in a 
pre-eminent sense, who claims to be of more or less pure 
Portuguese descent, is of Portuguese speech, and forms 
the cultured section of the population. How far the 
claim of racial purity is justified can no longer be deter- 
mined, the estimates varying as much as from one- 
ninth to one-fourth. 

Most of the later immigrants came, not from Portugal, 
but from Madeira and the Azores, and from these the 
early settlers are distinguished by a lighter or pale 
yellowish colour, shorter figures, more elegant and easy 
address. Careful observers have also noticed a marked 
difference between the Northern and the Southern 
Brazilians, the latter, who represent the historical Paul- 
istas of S. Paulo, Pdo Grande do Sul, and Minas Geraes, 
being more robust, industrious, and energetic, while also 
approaching nearer to the European type. It was this 
rude but vigorous element that made Brazil, helped to 
beat back the French and Dutch " interlopers," opened 
up the backwoods, developed the mining and plantation 
industries, unscrupulously and impartially raided and 
plundered aborigines, Jesuit Missions, and the Spaniard 
alike, and advanced the frontiers of the empire nearly 
to the foot of the Western Cordilleras. 

Later, they busied themselves with internal political 



BRAZIL 565 

affairs, more than once threatened the integrity of the 
State, and may yet bring about a rupture between the 
tropical northern and the sub-tropical and temperate 
southern lands. The sympathies of many, especially in 
Rio Grande do Sul, are with their Argentine and 
Uruguayan neighbours, and the tendency seems to be for 
all these southern populations of relatively pure Caucasic 
stock to gravitate together round the Plate estuary, and 
build up a powerful confederacy strong enough to control 
the destiny, not only of Brazil, but of the Latin world in 
South America. 

Topography 

A first glance at a topographical map of Brazil gives 
the impression that in this region there are no inland 
towns, none at all except on the sea-coast. The impres- 
sion is so far correct that in the three vast provinces of 
Amazonas, Matto Grosso, and Goyaz, with an area of over 
1,550,000 square miles, there is actually only one place 
— Manaos — which has over 10,000 inhabitants. Yet 
so numerous are the urban groups in the Atlantic States 
that Brazil, as a whole, contains more large cities, both 
relatively and absolutely, than any other region in the 
Southern Continent. No doubt some exaggeration pre- 
vails regarding their size, owing to the practice of giving 
the returns, not for the towns themselves, but for the 
townships (Comarcas), which of ten comprise extensive rural 
districts. But the subjoined table, in which this source 
of error is largely eliminated, shows that in Brazil there 
are over sixty places with more than 10,000 inhabitants, 
and as many as six with 100,000 and upwards, while 
according to the latest estimates (1898) the federal 
capital is now" the largest city in South America, having 
already outstripped its rival, Buenos Ayres, by several 



566 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



thousands. It may also be noticed that the Brazilian 
towns, being laid out, like those of the Old World, at 
haphazard, or at least without much regard for symmetry, 
are generally far more interesting and picturesque than 
those of Spanish America, planned for the most part on 
the convenient but monotonous rectangular lines of the 
chess-board. 





Pop. est. 








Pop. est. 




1894-98. 


1894-9S. 


Rio de Janeiro 


800,000 


Santa Anna . . .16,000 


S. Paulo . . . . 


220,000 


Campinas . 






16,000 


Bahia 


200,000 


Tauhate . 






16,000 


Recife (Pernambuco) ' 


190,000 


Ouro Preto 






16,000 


Para (Belem) . 


110,000 


Alcantara . 






15,000 


Porto Alegre . 


100,000 


Bom-Fim . 






15,000 


Fortaleza . . 


48,000 


Sorocaba . 






15,000 


Natal . 


40,000 


S. Fidelis . 






14,000 


S. Luiz (Maranhao) 


40,000 


Aracaju 






14,000 


Maceio . 


, 34,000 


Diamantina 






13,000 


Pelotas . 


32,000 


Guaratiba . 






13,000 


Bello Horizonte 


30,000 


Iraja 






13,000 


Florianopolis (Desterro) 


28,000 


Maragojipe 






13,000 


Nictheroy 


26,000 


Paranahiba 






12,000 


Caxias 


25,000 


Petropolis . 






12,000 


Therezina 


. 24,000 


Maranguape 






12,000 


Cameta , 


22,000 


Estancia . 






12,000 


Manaos , 


22,000 


Alagoinbas 






12,000 


Curitiba . 


21,000 


ObiJos 






12,000 


Campos . 


. 20,000 


S. Domingos 






12,000 


Praia Grande . 


20,000 


Alegrete . 






12,000 


Aracaty . 


, 18,000 


Sobral 






11,000 


Ceara-Mirim . 


18,000 


Cachoeiro . 






11,000 


Inhauma 


18,000 


Uberaba . 






11,000 


Parahiba 


. 18,000 


Nazareth . 






11,000 


Rio Bonito 


18,000 


Larena 






11,000 


Itaborany 


18,000 


Itn . 






11,000 


Amarante 


. 17,000 


Parahybana 






11,000 


Braganza 


. 17,000 


Piracieaba 






11,000 


Breves . 


. 17,000 


Castro 






. 10,000 


Santafem 


. 16,000 


Iguape 






. 10,000 


Campo Grande 


. 16,000 


Victoria . 






. 10,000 


Jacarepagua . 


16,000 


Cuyaba . 






8,000 


Santos . 


16,000 


Goyaz 






3,000 



BKAZIL 567 

Maiiaos, capital of Amazonas, stands on a little 
eminence on the left bank of the Eio Negro 10 miles 
above its confluence with the main stream. Barra do 
Rio Xegro, as it was formerly called, takes its present 
name from a now extinct Indian tribe, which was at 
one time the head of a powerful confederacy at first 
hostile but afterwards well disposed towards the Por- 
tuguese. In those days the Paolistas and their Indian 
allies had extended their raiding expeditions to the 
Upper Amazon waters, and had here erected a strong 
outpost to protect their base of operations, and keep up 
the communications with the planters of the Lower 
Amazon districts, to whom they sold the kidnapped natives. 
Such was the origin of Manaos, which is now a thriving 
riverside port, where rubber and other local produce is 
brought from far and wide for export to Europe, and 
whence all kinds of manufactured goods are distributed 
to the surrounding populations. Here are settled a 
number of English traders and speculators engaged in 
developing the natural resources of Amazonia, which 
already enjoys the benefit of direct trading relations with 
the outer world. Lying at the converging point of the 
great waterways — Upper and Lower Amazon, Eio Negro, 
and Madeira — Manaos is the necessary emporium for the 
exchanges of the interior, and is consequently one of those 
fcivoured places for which a great future is anticipated. 

But if Manaos may thus become the future " Queen 
of the Amazon," this title has already been earned by 
the great city of Belem, better known as Farce, from the 
vast province of that name of which it is the capital. 
Founded in 1615 on the Gtiajara inlet of the Para 
estuary. Para was little heard of till the middle of the 
nineteenth century, when, after being nearly ruined by 
civil strife and epidemics, it entered on a career of sur- 



568 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

prising prosperity, and has now direct commercial relations 
with half the world. 

All visitors speak highly of its pleasant surroundings, 
and of its unrivalled position on the right bank of the 
great estuary which cpmmunicates directly with the 
rich Tocantins basin, and has hitherto attracted all the 
shipping of the Amazon itself As long as the northern 
island-studded branch of the main stream continues to 
be neglected nothing can threaten the supremacy of 
Para, whose yearly exports — chiefly rubber and colonial 
produce, now average about £4,000,000. Another 
indication of its rapid expansion is afforded by the 
growth of the population, which, after falling from 
25,000 to 15,000 during the so-called Cahanagem social 
war (1835-48), and to about 5000 after the terrible 
outbreak of yellow fever in 1850, again rose to over 
•100,000 in 1890, and is now (1899) estimated at 
120,000. Although somewhat endangered by shifting 
banks and reefs, the channel is navigable from its mouth 
to Para, a distance of 60 miles, and thence aU the way 
to Manaos for large sea-going steamers. 

" The city of Para has not much to boast of in 
architecture ; nevertheless from the river it has an im- 
posing appearance, from the number of its churches. 
The convent of San Merced, and the president's palace, 
amongst old buildings, and the new theatre, a very 
elegant structure, are all worthy of notice. The streets 
are mostly broad and well-paved, and kept decently 
clean. Excellent hired carriages ply for the accommo- 
dation of the richer city merchants, while a tramway, 
w^orked by a locomotive, takes the humbler individual out 
to the cooler districts of Nazareth, a very pretty suburb 
with many elegant villa residences." ^ Several of the 

^ Mathews, p. 5. 



BRAZIL 569 

thoroughfares are lined with fine palm-trees, there is a 
large botanical garden, and a favonrahle impression is 
produced by the unusually large number of scientific, 
literary, and charitable institutions. 

S. Luiz de Maranluio, capital of the State of Maranhao, 
occupies a picturesque position on the wooded slopes of 
the island of like name, where it was founded in 1594 
by the French adventurer, Jacques Briffault, and by his 
successor. La Eevardier^, named S. Louis in honour of 
Louis XIII., in 1610. This name has been retained by 
the Portuguese, although the French intruders were 
expelled in 1615. The island is partly separated from 
the mainland by the almost land-locked harbour of S. 
Marcos Bay, the entrance to which is commanded on 
the south side by the capital, and on the north by the 
seaport of Alcantara. Both places do a brisk export 
trade in coffee, hides, and sugar ; but the bay is slowly 
silting up owing to the sediment brought down by the 
coast-streams converging at this point. 

Although destitute of any natural haven, Fortaleza, 
capital of Ceara, is a larger place than S. Luiz. It lies 
on an open roadstead at the mouth of the little Ptio 
Ceara, where the anchorage is good, and large vessels 
lind a little shelter from the south winds. It takes its 
name from the " fortlet," which was here founded early in 
the seventeenth century, both to keep the Tapuya Indians 
in awe, and to prevent the Dutch from obtaining a foot- 
ing on this part of the coast. The city is well-laid out 
with broad well-paved and well-lighted streets, generally 
planted with trees. 

Therezina, capital of Piauhy, stands on the right 
bank of the Paranahiba do Norte. Although dating 
only from the year 1852, when the seat of the local 
administration was removed thither from the old his- 



570 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

torical city of Oeiras, it is already the largest place in 
the State, its prosperity being largely due to its salu- 
brious position some miles above the low-lying and 
somewhat malarious district about the mouth of the 
river. Here is the little seaport of Paranahiba, which 
serves as the outlet for the cattle, hides, and other pro- 
duce of this agricultural province. 

A much larger and more important place is Natal, 
capital of Eio Grande do Norte, which stands a few 
miles south of Cape S. Eoque, and is consequently the 
nearest Brazilian seaport to the Old World. Natal 
occupies a sheltered position on the right bank of the 
Eio Grande estuary, which, however, is obstructed by a 
shallow bar and shifting sand-banks. A somewhat 
similar position is held by Parahiba, which lies at the 
head of the much larger Parahiba estuary, and is capital • 
of the State named from this river. Here also the 
approaches are endangered by several reefs and sand- 
banks, so that all these northern seaports are avoided by 
vessels of heavy draught. 

To this cause is largely due the great expansion of 
Recife de Pernamhuco, or simply Pernamhuco, capital of 
the State of that name, which although far from a good 
harbour, is at least the first south of Cape S. Eoque acces- 
sible to ships drawing over 1 6 feet of water. Eecife (The 
" Eeef "), which has remained the official name, has refer- 
ence to the rocky island where, according to some 
authorities, the first settlement was formed in 1504, 
soon after the discovery. This island lies just inside a 
long; frino-ino- reef which here encloses a considerable 
expanse of deep water communicating with the open sea 
through two or three navigaljle passages, and also con- 
taining the larger island or peninsula of Antonio Vaz. 
Both of these islands have long been covered wath 



BRAZIL 



571 



buildings, and are connected by several bridges or cause- 
ways with each other, with Boa Vista on the opposite 
mainland, and by carriage roads with the former capital, 
Oliiida, which occupies an eminence three or four miles 
farther north. All these quarters are now comprised 
within the municipal district, through which wind tlie 
channels of the two coast-streams, Capiharihc and Beberihe, 
here converging from the south and north. 




STREET IN PERNAMBUCO. 



Pernambuco, with its separate urban groups, thus pre- 
sents on a small scale a position somewhat analogous to 
Xew York and its cluster of detached quarters, with the 
important difference that, instead of a spacious bay, there 
is nothing beyond the barrier reef except an exposed 
roadstead with bad anchorage. Hence the port is 
already overcrowded, and Pernambuco cannot hope to 
compete much longer with its .southern rival, Bahia, 
unless one or otlier of the schemes be carried out which 



572 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

have been projected to improve and enlarge the harbour. 
Meanwhile the yearly shipping, including several lines 
of Atlantic steamers, already exceeds 1,000,000 tons, 
and the imports and exports (sugar, cotton, and all kinds 
of forest and colonial produce) average about £8,000,000. 
The State of Pernambuco is a chief centre of the cane- 
sugar industry, and in 1898 as much as 112,000 tons 
were shipped at Kecife, despite the competition of the 
bounty-fed beet-root sugar in Europe. 

The capital is also an important centre of intellectual 
life, and amongst its numerous scientific and literary 
institutions are the geological and geographical societies 
and several technical and other educational establish- 
ments. Some of the buildings, or parts of them, date 
from the time of the Dutch, who seized Eecife in 1630, 
and held the place with singular tenacity till finally 
expelled in 1654. The present quarter of S. Antonio, 
at the north end of Antonio Vaz, was long known as 
Mauricea {Mauritsstad), so named in honour of Maurice 
of N"assau. 

South of Pernambuco follow, at nearly equal distances, 
the flourishing seaport of Maceio, present capital of 
Alagoas, on Alagoas Bay ; Aracaju, since 1855 capital 
of Sergipe, on the right bank of the Eio Cotinguiba, six 
or seven miles from the coast ; and Bahia, capital of the 
State of like name, on the Bahia de Todos os Santos 
(" All Hallows Bay "), the most spacious, if not the finest, 
inlet on the east side of the Southern Continent. Bahia, 
or, to give it its full official title, S. Salvador da Bahia 
de Todos os Santos, was long the political, as it still is 
the ecclesiastical, capital of Brazil. The first settlement, 
said to have been founded by Diogo Alvares as early as 
1510, appears to have been of a temporary character, 
and the regular colony dates only from 1549, when 



BRAZIL 



573 



Thome de Souza settled his followers on the inner slope 
of the bold headland which projects southwards along 
the east side of tlie bay. The harbour is thus sheltered 
from the east and south-east winds, but not from the' 
heavy Atlantic waves, which roll in through the narrow 
entrance to the bay, and at times endangers the 
shipping riding at anchor in deep water close in-shore. 




STIIEKT IN r,AH!A. 



Bahia comprises two distinct quarters — the lower 
town at sea-level, and the upper town, which occupies 
the crest of the headland, and is reached by a hydraulic 
lift. As the headland, nearly 200 feet high, is the most 
elevated ground in the wliole basin, a superb panoramic 
view is commanded l)y the upper town of the great 
inland sea and its richly wooded shores. The waters of 
tliis magnificent inlet are of an emerald green colour, 
while the clear blue sky heightens the effect of light and 



574 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

shade produced by the dazzling white houses and the 
tropical vegetation. But the prospect is tame compared 
with that presented by the island-studded and hill- 
encircled bay of Eio de Janeiro. As the metropolis of 
the Brazilian church, Bahia is noted for the unusual 
number of its ecclesiastical edifices, mostly in the some- 
what monotonous style peculiar to the Jesuits. The 
upper town, however, is adorned by several fine structures, 
such as the Archbishop's Palace, the City Hall, the 
Theatre, Museum, Library, Hospitals, Medical High 
School, Treasury, and other Government buildings. 
Visitors are attracted especially by the beautiful Passeio 
Publico, municipal grounds containing a collection of 
Brazilian animals and a marble pyramid, which com- 
memorates the throwing open of the Brazilian seaports 
to the trade of the world in 1808. Bahia, after being 
nearly ruined by the abolition of the slave trade, has 
benefited almost more than any other by this en- 
lightened policy. Nearly 300,000 bags of coffee 
were here shipped in 1898, and for many years 
the total exports and imports have averaged about 
£4,000,000, while the shipping now approaches 
200,000 tons. 

Tramways, here called " Bonds," radiate in various 
directions, giving easy access to Itapagipe, Barra, Bio 
Vermelho, and other pleasant suburban districts. But 
there are two serious drawbacks — the large percentage 
of negroes, who are more in evidence in the streets than 
the whites, and the climate, which, owing to the exces- 
sive heat and moisture, is very trying to Europeans. 
Yellow fever committed great ravages in 1849, and was 
followed in 1855-56 by a terrible outbreak of cholera. 
But these epidemics, which seem to have spent their 
virulence, are now less dreaded than the carneiradas, that 



BRAZIL 575 

is, the endemic agues in all the low-lying tracts subject 
to periodical inundations. 

Victoria, capital of Espirito Santo, is pleasantly situ- 
ated at the head of the little bay which gives its name 
to the State. With Victoria properly begins the zone 
of present European colonisation, and since the com- 
pletion of the harbour- works giving access to sea-going 
vessels, great numbers of immigrants — Germans, Swiss, 
Poles, and especially Italians — are here landed every 
year. The port is indicated at a distance by the con- 
spicuous Mestialve, i.e. Mestre Alvarez, a three-peaked 
hill over 3000 feet high, which is one of the few heights 
in Brazil supposed to be of igneous origin. It is de- 
scribed by one observer as an extinct volcano still con- 
taining sulphur beds. 

Beyond Victoria follows the magnificent inlet which 
gives its name both to the federal capital and to the 
State of Hio de Janeiro. Facing this great city at the 
entrance of the bay is the old settlement of the Tamoyo 
Indians, Nictheroy, properly Nitherdhi. First sighted by 
de Solis in 1515, and again visited by Magellan in 1519, 
the Nidlieroy, or " Hidden Water," as it was called by 
the Tamoyo natives, remained almost forgotten till the 
year 1531 or 1532, when it was surveyed by Affonso de 
Souza. Supposing, from its secluded character, that it 
was the mouth of some great river, this navigator gave 
it the name of Rio de Janeiro, the " January Eiver," in 
reference to the first day of the new" year when he 
entered the inlet. It is noteworthy that the Indian as 
well as the Portuguese name still survives, Nictheroy, 
which stands on the right side of the entrance, over 
against the federal capital, being itself a large town, and 
since 1835 capital of the State of Eio de Janeiro. 

The many picturesque and varied beauties of the 



BRAZIL 571 

famous bay never fail to take the stranger by surprise. 
A series of fantastic hills on the left of the entrance 
especially attracts universal attention. Owing to their 
striking resemblance to the outstretched human figure, 
they have been collectively christened " The Stone Man," 
of which the famous " Sugar-loaf " hill forms the feet, 
and the often-described " Gavia " the face in profile. 
The bay itself presents one of the grandest prospects it 
is possible to imagine. Huge granitic piles, assuming 
the most eccentric outlines, present steep slopes which 
rise sheer above the surface and take on either side -of 
the entrance the aspect of natural fortresses. Within 
the vast oval basin, some 30 miles long by 20 broad, 
the horizon is everywhere bounded by the magnificent 
ranges of the Serras de Vinoa, de Tingua, da Estrella, 
dos Orgaos, do Morro Queimado, and others. 

This little landlocked sea, the receptacle of numerous 
rivers, streams, and torrents rushing down from the sur- 
rounding hills, is studded with many islands and rocky 
crags, amongst which the most noteworthy is Villegagnon, 
with its fort of the same name. At the foot of the 
Sugar-loaf are the batteries of S. Theodosio, on a projec- 
tion of the land opposite the fort of Sa7ita Cruz, with the 
little fortified island da-Lagem between the two. Farther 
on is the lUia das Colras, on which are situated many 
of the country seats of the Brazilian gentry. On tlie 
western shore to tlie left are the suburbs of Botafogo, 
north of the Morro do Flamivgo headland, and still 
farther to the north the little shrine of Nossa Senhora da 
Gloria, all combining to form one magnificent picture. 
The eastern shore develops at the entrance a deep saceo or 
bight flanked by a projection of the land ; the Fuuta da 
A^ossa Senhora da Boa Viagem to the south, surmounted 
by a chapel , and the Punta do Calahougo on the north. 
VOL. I 2 p 



578 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AXD TRAVEL 



The city lies ou the western shore of the bay. Its 
oldest quarter, dating from about the middle of the six- 
teenth century, occupies an irregular plain between two 
series of detached rocky hills, the southern series ending 
with the Punta do Calaboucjo crowned by the castle of S. 
Sebastian, and the northern terminating with the Morro 







$!^^^:._ 




^^^^^^ 







RIO HARBOTJK. 

Bento. Between these two points are the landing-places, 
the quays, and the old Imperial Palace. A couple of 
miles beyond the suburb of Mata Forcos is the castle of 
S. Cristovao. Like most other Brazilian towns, Eio could 
till lately boast of but few fine buildings, the cathedral 
and several convents being more remarkable for size than 
beauty. But in recent years the city has been adorned 
by several fine structures, conspicuous amongst which are 



BRAZIL 579 

the Alfaiidega (Custom-Honse), the Treasury, the School 
of Fine Arts, the City Hall, Post Oifice, Polytechnic, 
Board of Agriculture, Opera, and several Theatres. Eio 
is one of the chief outlets for the produce of the southern 
plantations, and in 1897 over 4,000,000 bags of coffee 
were shipped at this port. In the same year the total 
tonnage of vessels entered and cleared exceeded 4,250,000 
tons. Amongst the local industries are several woollen 
factories and flour-mills, some of which are capaljle of 
treating from 40,000 to 60,000 tons of wheat annually. 
But the place still suffers from defective sanitary arrange- 
ments, and although outbreaks of yellow fever and other 
epidemics are less frequent than formerly, the death-rate 
continues to be abnormally high, and Eio cannot yet be 
classed with those Brazilian cities which enjoy the 
reputation of being fairly healthy. 

Its surroundings, however, are extremely romantic, 
their beauty being much enhanced by the luxuriant 
vegetation of these tropical regions — the long silky-green 
leaf-blades of the banana tree, the variety of graceful 
palms, and the endless diversity of strange foliage and 
flowers. Of the primeval forest that once covered the 
hills and slopes only a few clumps of the larger trees 
have been preserved in the vicinity of the city. But the 
landscape is still enlivened by the famous Tijuca Cascade, 
which is formed by a torrent rising on the highest crest 
of the Tijuca cliffs, and rushing over a rocky precipice 
50 feet high. Some years ago an Act was passed 
forbiddino; the further destruction of the forest trees on 
the hill tops in the belief that the rainfall in the neigh- 
bourhood of the city was decreasing by the rapid clearing 
of the land. Thus the crests and slopes of the magnifi- 
cent ranges in the rear of the bay have been preserved 
in something like their pristine luxuriance. 



580 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGEAPHY AND TRAVEL 

From Eio a short railway with extremely steep 
gradients leads to the old German settlement of Fetrojoolis, 
which stands on the slopes of the Organs range, 2634 
feet above sea-level, and was the former summer residence 
of the Imperial family. A superb prospect is here 
enjoyed of the distant bay and of the lovely wooded 
heights in the middle distance, diversified with foaming 
torrents, cataracts, and waterfalls, grottos, crags of every 
conceivable form, and magnificent trees of the richest 
foliage and a thousand exquisite shapes. 

In the great mining State of Minas Geraes the seat 
of the provincial government was removed in 1894 
from the old historical capital, Ouro Preto, at the foot 
of Itacolumi, to Minas, or Bello Horizonte, which is now 
connected by a branch 9 miles long with the Central 
Kailway. Since the change the population of Ouro 
Preto (" Black Gold," so called from the dark colour of 
the neighbouring auriferous rocks) has fallen from 26,000 
to about 14,000, while that of Bello Horizonte, till then 
mere waste land, has risen from zero to 30,000 in 1899. 
"A plentiful water supply has been brought from the 
neighbouring mountains, broad streets and a public 
garden have been laid out, and the whole town 
is admirably liglited by electricity." ■^ The climate is 
excellent, and drier than that of Ouro Preto, which had 
the disadvantage of being built on several hills where 
there was no room for expansion. 

Nevertheless the transfer, which cost the State Govern- 
ment about £1,000,000, is regretted by many, who in 
the new " mushroom city " miss the picturesque situation 
and the quaint old buildings, as well as the crowded 
historical associations of the old capital. IVIoreover, 
Ouro Preto stands in one of the richest mineral districts 
^ H. D. Beaumont, Consular Beport, February 1899. 



BRAZIL 581 

in the world, the resources of which are still far from 
exhausted. " In the very streets of the town gold is 
still found in small quantities after heavy rain " (ib.) ; 
from the neighbouring Gongo Secco Mine an English 
Company has extracted over £1,000,000, while at no 
great distance there are mountains of almost pure iron 
still rmtouched. Farther north gold occurs associated 
with diamonds, as indicated by the very name of the 
old city of Diamantina on the western slope of Itambe. 
Here diamonds were first discovered in 1725, although 
a band of Paolistas had already founded the station 
under the name of Tijuco before the close of the seven- 
teenth century. From the same locality came the 
famous Portugal crown diamond, the value and even 
true character of which have never been ascertained.^ 
Between 1772 and 1843, the period of greatest activity, 
the total yield was 1,355,000 carats, worth about 
£2,500,000, irrespective of the contraband trade carried 
on to a large extent in colonial times. In 1898 the 
Boa Vista Company was formed in Paris to buy out the 
garimpeiros, or small miners, and work this rich mineral 
district systematically. 

South of Minas Geraes plantations take the place 
of the mining industries, and S. Paulo, capital of the 
great coffee-growing State of like name, ranks already 
as the second city in Brazil for population, and perhaps 
the first for the public spirit and enterprise of its in- 
haliitants. It lies not far from the coast on the inland 
slope of the Serra do Mar, about the headwaters of the 
Eio Tiete, which flows west to the Parana, and is 
connected by a short railway with its seaport of Santos. 

1 The "Braganza," as this stone has been christened, weighs 1680 
carats, and if genuine would be worth £60,000,000, but is by many 
supposed to be a white topaz (Streeter, Precious Stones and Gems). 



582 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGliAPHY AND TRAVEL 

S. Paulo is one of the oldest places in Brazil, the convent 
of the Jesuits, now transformed to a High School, dating 
from the year 1552. Yet it has a strangely modern 
aspect with its long and busy thoroughfares lined with 
handsome shops and warehouses, and lit by electricity, 
its tramways and railways radiating in all directions, 
its fine suburban quarters, and many imposing public 
buildings, such as the Government Offices, the Cathedral 
and Episcopal Palace, the Treasury, the Legislative 
Chambers, and especially the really magnificent Palace 
of Ypiranga, erected to commemorate the Declaration of 
Independence. Thanks to its elevated position on the 
plateau (2460 ft.) its relatively high latitude, good water, 
and improved sanitary arrangements, S. Paulo is both 
a pleasant and a healthy residence, where the large 
European section of its inhabitants have found new and 
congenial homes amid surroundings not greatly dissimilar 
from those of the old country. Extensive drainage and 
other works have also recently been undertaken to 
improve the climate of Santos, and relieve it from the 
reproach of being one of the worst fever dens in the 
Xew World. In 1898 as much as 5,630,000 bags of 
coffee were shipped at this place, while the total annual 
exchanges now average £15,000,000. 

Agricultural interests, including stock-breeding, are 
also dominant in the three other southern states of 
Parana, with its capital Curitiha, which, like S. Paulo, 
lies on the landward slope of the Coast Ptange ; Santa 
Catharina, whose capital, Desterro, on the island of Santa 
Catharina, has recently been re-named Florianopolis ; 
and Ptio Grande do Sul, whose capital, Forto Alegre, was 
founded in 1742 by some Portuguese from the Azores 
at the head of the Guahiba estuary, converging point of 
all the land and water highwavs. Bio Grande, former 



BRAZIL 583 

capital of this state, stands on the Eio Grande emissary 
of the Laguna dos Patos, not far from the Uruguay 
frontier ; but it cannot reap the full benefit of this 
advantageous position until the harbour works are 
executed, by which it is proposed to improve its seaward 
approaches. Meanwhile it is somewhat eclipsed both by 
Porto Alegre and by Desterro, which latter is accessible 
to vessels drawing 14 or 16 feet of water, and is also 
much more pleasantly situated on an island noted for its 
excellent climate. 

Goyaz, capital of the State of like name, and Cuyaba, 
present capital of Matto Grosso, await the development 
of the interior to become even good-sized towns. Goyaz 
was founded, without any regard for its future prospects, 
but only as a mining station, in an auriferous district 
on the Ptio Vermelho in the Upper Araguaya basin. 
The climate, however, is good, and if little gold and few- 
diamonds are now found in the neighbourhood, the 
district grows a good wine, and an excellent tobacco, 
the fiLino i^zcat^o, which commands the first price in 
Brazil, and is vaunted by the natives as the finest in 
the world. 

Cuyaba occupies an important position near the head 
of the Cuyaba affluent of the Paraguay, and consequently 
close to the low divide between that river and the 
Amazon basin. Like Goyaz, it was originally a mining 
station, and is also favoured with an excellent climate. 
To this circumstance Cuyaba owes the distinction of 
having been chosen in 1820 as the seat of the pro- 
vincial government instead of the old capital Villa 
Bella, called also Matto Grosso, which was founded 
in 1752 in a fever -stricken mineral district on the 
Upper Guapore. 



584 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

Natural Resources — Mining Industry 

In Brazil mining operations have long ceased to lie 
of much economic importance, and although manufactures 
have in recent years been greatly stimulated by the higli 
protective duties levied on foreign wares in the interest 
of the local industries, the country still derives most of 
its wealth from the land and water — forest produce, 
plantations, small farming, stock-breeding, and fisheries. 

The formerly productive gold-mines of Eio de Janeiro 
and S. Paulo have been mostly abandoned, while those 
of Goyaz are worked only by a few private persons or 
small associations without capital or modern appliances. 
Gold also occurs in many other districts, such as Matto 
Grosso, Maranhao, Piauhy, Parana, Santa Catharina, and 
Kio Grande do Sul, but is nowhere systematically mined 
except in Minas Geraes, from which is obtained nearly 
all the precious metal still exported. Between 1780 
and 1898 Minas Geraes yielded £78,000,000, and the 
whole of Brazil about £144,000,000 ; but the present 
annual yield scarcely exceeds £200,000. Of the six 
mines at work in Minas Geraes five belong to Enoiish 
companies. The production of diamonds (see above) has 
also greatly fallen off since the discovery of these gems 
in South Africa. It fell for the whole of Brazil from 
a quantity valued at £300,000 in 1867 to £40,000 in 
1898. Associated with diamonds are several other 
precious stones, such as topazes, garnets, amethysts, and 
Ijeryls, but not emeralds, those formerly reputed as such 
being a variety of tourmaline. 

No serious attempt has yet been made to utilise the 
rich deposits of the more useful metals — copper in Eio 
Grande do Sul, lead and especially iron in Minas Geraes ; 
magnetite in Parana and Santa Catharina. In the latter 



BRAZIL 585 

State and in Eio Grande do Sul there appear to be 

extensive reservoirs of petroleum, which has recently 
been tapped at one or two points. 



Agricultural Prospects — Coffee Culture 

The former exaggerated notions regarding the " bound- 
less vegetable resources " of Brazil have been somewhat 
modified, since it has been shown that most of the 
campos, that is to say, about two-thirds of the whole land, 
are scarcely arable, and in any case of little use for agri- 
culture. It has also been pointed out that Brazil lacks 
the two fertilising elements of the earth-worm, which is 
ceaselessly ploughing ;ip and enriching the soil, and of a 
winter season during which the land " sleeps and is 
refreshed." In the dry months from June to September 
the upland campos show vast spaces "covered with a 
sparse vegetation, dried up and parched, the boughs and 
branches all bare and leafless, and the soil baking in the 
dry heat ; then the fallen leaves, dried hard and crisp, 
are scattered and broken by the wind, and their elements 
dissolve into gasses. It is only in the thick forests, 
where the soil is naturally damp and moist, that these 
sources of fertility are allowed to collect and enrich the 
ground" (Wells, vol. ii. p. 356). 

Nevertheless, there still remain immense areas of 
fertile lands, which only await settlers and development 
to supply half the globe with all kinds of valuable com- 
modities. These lands are, moreover, conveniently situ- 
ated on the Atlantic seaboard, that is, in the region 300 
nv 400 miles broad which lies between the Amazon and 
Plate estuaries, and comprises nearly a million square 
miles, enjoying easy access to the outer world. Thanks 
partly to the large percentage of freedmen, since the 



586 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AXD TRAVEL 

emancipation no longer bound to work, and partly to 
the enervating effect of the climate on the descendants 
of the vigorous early colonists, the old settlements in the 
north have remained somewhat stationary, or even lost 
ground, at least in the interior, as is also the case in the 
mining districts of Goyaz and Matto Grosso. But in 
the south the inflow of immigrants from Europe has 
giA'en an extraordinary impulse to agricultural pursuits, 
as shown by the mere fact that more than half of the 
world's yield of coffee is now raised in S. Paulo and some 
of the neighbouring States. Introduced from Guiana 
early in the eighteenth century, coffee culture made 
little progress till about 1840, when the yearly crop 
exceeded 60,000 tons. Since then it has steadily 
increased to 540,000 tons in 1899, when the quantity 
exported was valued at £17,000,000. 

Formerly Brazil also took the first place for the pro- 
duction of cane-sugar ; but at present the plantations, 
mainly confined to Pernambuco and Kio de Janeiro, 
seldom yield more than about 200,000 tons, and of this 
a large proportion is used for the distillation of cachaea, 
an inferior kind of rum found in every Brazilian house- 
hold, but not much appreciated by strangers. 

The cultivation of cotton, which is grown especially 
in Ceara and neighbouring states, received a great 
impulse during the American War of Secession. Since 
tlien it has been revived by the almost prohibitive duties 
levied on foreign cotton goods, and there are at present 
as many as 155 cotton-mills kept going by the local 
yield. Cotton spinning and weaving, mostly confined to 
the Southern States, is, at present, the most flourishing 
manufacturing industry, employing (1899) as many as 
200,000 hands, and producing plain but substantial 
unsized textiles to the yearly value of over <£o,500,000. 



BRAZIL 587 

Tobacco, of uniformly fine quality, is grown chiefly in 
Bahia and Goyaz, where the yearly crop averages 50,000 
tons, valued at from £1,000,000 to £1,250,000. Of 
cacao, also of prime quality, the annual yield exceeds 6000 
tons; but the tea plant, which thrives well on the S. 
Paulo plateau, is neglected for mate, of which 14,000 tons 
are now annually exported, chiefly to Belgium. 

Of strictly alimentary plants, raised mainly for local 
consumption and cultivated in a somewhat primitive way 
by the small farmers, the most important are rice, manioc, 
black beans, maize, potatoes, and yams. The first three 
are essential constituents of the national dish, feijoada, 
to which is usually added came secca, or charqui, of 
which there are two kinds, one from Argentina or Ptio 
Grande do Sul, the other, of finer quality, from the 
Obidos district, Amazonia. Of fruits, all generally of 
excellent flavour, the most widely diffused are bananas 
of two kinds, figs, and oranges, these last growing almost 
wild, as in Paraguay. 

Stock-Breeding — Forest Produce 

Despite the vast extent of the grassy campos, stock- 
breeding is relatively little developed, except in Eio 
Grande do Sul. In the central provinces there are two 
distinct breeds of cattle, which might be called " short- 
horns " and " long-horns," some of the latter (in Minas 
Geraes) with magnificent horns 5 and even 6 feet from 
tip to tip. Both have been crossed with stock from 
Jersey, and with the Indian zebu. Horses are generally 
of inferior blood, and there are no ponies comparable to 
the sturdy, docile, and sure-footed little Chilian breed. 

Eeference has already been made to the endless variety 
of natural products yielded by the Amazonian forests. 



588 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

These certainly constitute a permanent source of the 
national wealth, and rubber especially now forms a chief 
item in the table of .yearly exports — £2,000,000 in 1898. 
Thanks to the development of steam navigation on the 
Amazon and its tributaries, this industry has made rapid 
progress since 1840, when the annual yield scarcely 
averaged 400 tons. In 1896 it exceeded 24,000 tons, 
while the total yield between 1840 and 1899 has been 
estimated at over 380,000 tons. 



Railway Enterprise — Trade 

But, for their full expansion all these industries 
still await improved communications, and especially the 
execution of several railway projects, which have been 
planned either to supersede the wretched routes, often 
mere tracks or bridle-paths across the plateaux, or else 
to turn the cataracts barring access to the upper reaches 
of such great navigable arteries as the Madeira, the Eio 
jSTegro or the S. Francisco. Some of these projects, 
which have been prepared by competent engineers and 
are perfectly practicable, aim not merely at opening up 
the Brazilian backwoods, but at giving the Andean States, 
especially Peru and Bolivia, direct and easy access to the 
European markets. They are thus of international con- 
cern, and when carried out must make the Amazon one 
of the great commercial highways of the world, while 
conferring on Brazil itself a position of unrivalled import- 
ance as the intermediary of the exchanges between both 
sides of the Atlantic Ocean. 

Meanwhile Brazil still lacks a uniform and continuous 
railway system, altliough, since the completion of the 
first line from Eio to Petropolis in 1856, as many as 
8660 miles have been opened for traffic, and in 1900 



BKAZIL 589 

over 5000 miles were in process of construction. But 
these lines, owned some by the State, some by private 
companies, have not been constructed on a uniform plan, 
or even with a uniform gauge. There are, however, two 
considerable provincial networks, one radiating from Eio 
and penetrating into Minas Geraes, the other starting 
from Santos, and these are now connected by a line 370 
miles long, which runs up the valley of the Parahiba do 
Sul and crosses the water-parting down to S. Paulo in 
the Parana basin. Elsewhere there are only a few 
isolated lines, or else little detached systems, such as 
those branching in several directions from Pernambuco, 
or ramifying round Bahia Bay. There is, however, some 
prospect of a transcontinental trunk line being soon 
undertaken to connect the Brazilian coast systems with 
those of the Pacific seaboard over the Bolivian plateau. 

Meanwhile a general increase of wealth and material 
prosperity is attested by the annual trade returns, which, 
despite heavy protective duties on imported wares, 
amoimting in some instances to 80, 100, and even 120 
per cent, show a steady increase from year to year. 
Thus the total imports rose from about £7,000,000 in 
1885 to over £22,000,000 in 1899, and the exports 
from £8,000,000 to £27,000,000 in the same period. 
In the latter year the British imports exceeded 
£5,000,000, while the exports to Great Britain fell 
short of £4,000,000. The chief items of export are 
coffee, rubber, tobacco, hides, and cocoa, the first-named 
being very much more than all the rest together. 

Government — Education — Finance — Armaments 

The present constitution, in virtue of which the 
" Brazilian Empire " became the " United States of 



590 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TPtAVEL 

Brazil" (see p. 486), was adopted by the National 
Congress in February 1891. It provides for a legis- 
lative assembly, consisting of a Senate and Chamber of 
Deputies, both paid and boih chosen by direct vote, the 
Senators for nine years, one-third retiring by rotation 
every three years, the Deputies for three years in the 
proportion of one to every 70,000 of the population, as 
shown by each recurrent decennial census, but so that 
each State shall have at least four representatives. By 
this arrangement the Lower House comprises at present 
(1899) 212 members, while the Senators are permanently 
fixed at 63, that is to say, three for each State and for 
the Federal district. The States themselves, which 
correspond in name and extent with the old historical 
provinces, are virtually so many autonomous republics, 
enjoying all the privileges of self-government which do 
not clash with those of the Commonwealth. Thus they 
have each its own Congress of two houses, which manages 
all local affairs without interference from the Federal 
Government, except for defence, maintenance of order, the 
execution of the Federal laws and fiscal arrangements in 
such matters as import duties, stamps, rates of postage, 
and bank-note circulation. Even the export duties are 
controlled by the provincial parliaments, and applied to 
local administrative purposes. 

The executive functions are entrusted to a President, 
who must be a native of Brazil and over thirty-five 
years of age, and is elected with a Vice-President for 
four years by direct popular vote. He is not re-eligible 
for the next ensuing term, but enjoys extensive powers, 
including the appointment and dismissal of the six 
ministers or Secretaries of State (War, Navy, Foreign 
Affairs, Finance, Justice with Public Instruction, and 
Industry with Board of AVorks), the supreme command 



BRAZIL 591 

of the army and navy, and (within certain limits) the 
right to declare war and make peace. 

The franchise is practically universal for all citizens 
over twenty years of age, the only exceptions being 
mendicants, illiterates, soldiers under the flag, and monks 
under vows of obedience. 

Catholicism, formerly the State religion, was disestab- 
lished by the Constitution, which proclaimed the absolute 
freedom and equality of all forms of religion. Provision, 
however, is made by the State for the maintenance of 
the existing clergy of the Catholic Church, which com- 
prises the whole of the settled population, except about 
160,000 Protestants and 10,000 Jews and sundries. 

In respect of education, which appears to be nowhere 
compulsory, Brazil stands at a very low level, about 84 
per cent of the population being returned as absolutely 
unlettered. At the same time the returns under this 
head are extremely defective, and in many cases alto- 
gether unprocurable. Thus the central department has 
constantly to complain that it can get no information 
from the States, which partly control secondary, and 
have the exclusive management of primary education, 
limited only by the conditions required under the Con- 
stitution that primary instruction be gratuitous, and 
that all branches be under lay management. On the 
other hand the higher education is administered by the 
central government, which maintains two schools of 
medicine, four of law, four military, one naval, one of 
mines, and a polytechnic, besides the Lyceum of Arts and 
Trades, and a school of astronomy and engineering 
connected with the observatory at Ptio. 

The financial troubles of Brazil may be said to have 
begun with the Paraguayan war, wdiich cost her 
£60,000,000. Since then the yearly Budget has 



592 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 

generally shown a deficit, sometimes of two or three 
millions. Nevertheless she has never repudiated her 
debts, or failed to meet her foreign engagements, and as 
her assets — the national resources — are great, her credit 
still stands high in the money markets of the world. 

It would perhaps stand higher, were she to reduce 
her armaments, which seem to be in excess of her 
legitimate needs, and continue to absorb an undue 
proportion of the national revenues. A standing army 
of nearly 30,000 men, besides a gendarmerie of over 
20,000, and a navy of four ironclads, five cruisers, six 
monitors for coast defence, several torpedoes and gun- 
boats are maintained at a cost of nearly £2,000,000, 
while the public debt is approaching £200,000,000. 
and the yearly deficit exceeded £1,000,000 in 1898. 



To /ace page 592. 



35 




Sfan/rrdi Stmg^ iEKai? Zffr<dari 



CHAPTEE XVI 

THE FALKLAND ISLANDS AND SOUTH GEORGIA 

The soundings taken by the Belgian Antarctic Expedi- 
tion of 1898-99 fully confirm the results of previous 
surveys, tending to show that the continental plateau 
falls beyond Fuegia rapidly southwards in the direction 
of the Shetlands and Graham's Land, but is continued 
from South Patagonia and Staten Island by the so-called 
Burdivood Bank eastwards in the direction of the Fall^:- 
lands and South Georgia. Thus is confirmed, if con- 
firmation were needed, the assumption that both of 
these outlying British possessions are not oceanic lands 
upheaved by igneous agencies, of which there are no 
traces, but at one time formed part either of South 
America or of the Austral Continent, the belief in which 
has been revived by recent geological and biological 
observation. Support is in fact lent by many circum- 
stances to the generally accepted view that the Andean 
system, which now terminates abruptly at Staten Island, 
reappears in the Falkland Geoup, which in its main 
physical features presents a close resemblance to the 
Fuegian Archipelago. It consists of two large masses, 
the West and Bast Falkland, fringed by clusters of about 
a hundred reefs, rocks, and islets, and divided by the 
vol. I 2 Q 



o94 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAl'HY AND TRAVEL 

narrow and shallow Falkland Sound into two nearly 
equal sections, with a total area of 6500 square miles.-' 

As in Fuegia, Loth of the large islands are indented 
by numerous fjord-like inlets, which are all disposed in 
the same direction from north-west to south-east, and 
are almost certainly of glacial origin. The ranges of 
low hills also have the same general trend, and are 
confined to the northern parts, where they attain their 
greatest elevation in Mount Adam 2325 feet hi^h. 

Like most marine groups, the Falklands, which lie 
340 miles east of Magellan Strait, enjoy a more equable 
and temperate climate tljan might be expected from 
their position between 51" and 53° S. lat. The glass 
may for a short time fall as low as 20° or even 15° 
Fahr. in severe winters, but it seldom rises above 76", 
the mean for the year lying between 45° and 50°. The 
Archipelago is, moreover, one of the healthiest places in 
the whole world, the birth-rate rising to 28 or 30, while 
the mortality scarcely exceeds 7 or 8 per thousand. 
But it is not a pleasant place of residence, being both 
damp and foggy, and exposed to high gales, wliich pre- 
vail at all times, and are said occasionally to blow with 
such violence as to uproot the very cabbages of the 
kitchen-gardens, and scatter them like chaff over the 
land. Certain it is, that despite an aljundant rainfall 
and a suitable soil, no trees can grow in the islands, so 
that the vegetation is mainly herbaceous. Large tracts 
are covered witli the so-called " tussock-grass " {Dactylis 
ca'spitosa), which grows in tufts five or six feet high, and 
both as green fodder and as hay is unsurpassed as food 
for cattle, sheep, and horses. Even the pigs will grub 
up and greedily devour the succulent roots. Hence 
these animals are not encouraged by the settlers, who 

1 East Falkland, 3000 ; West Falkland, 2300 ; islets, 1200. 



THE FALKLAND ISLANDS AND SOUTH GEORGIA 595 

devote their attention chiefly to sheep-fanning for the 
sake of the wool, which forms the staple export of the 
colony. In recent years they have also taken up the 
frozen-meat industry, for which the horned cattle supply 
an excellent raw material. It is noteworthy that these 
animals, sprung from some oxen let loose on the islands 
by the French navigator, Bougainville, in 1764, have 
considerably increased in size, while the horses have on 
the contrary grown smaller. The native fauna is repre- 
sented chiefly by penguins, which resort to the Archi- 
pelago in such multitudes that the English governor has 
been nicknamed " King of the Penguins." 

First sighted by Davis in 1592, and again visited in 
1594 by Hawkins, who named them the "Maiden 
Islands " in honour of Queen Elizabeth, the Falklands 
received their present designation in 1689 from Strong, 
in compliment to his friend and patron. Lord Falkland. 
Then they were neglected till about the time of Bougain- 
ville's visit, when the Spaniards established a military 
post at a point already occupied by a few English pioneers, 
whom they treated in a somewhat high-handed way. 
This brought on the scene a squadron under Admiral 
Byron, who, after reinstating the dispossessed settlers, 
founded the station of Egmont, on the bay of like name. 
But the port was not maintained, and in 1828 Argen- 
tina, as heir to the rights of Spain, made a concession of 
the group to Louis Varnet, a French stock-breeder. His 
claims, however, were not recognised by the powers, and 
when he attempted to enforce them by levying taxes 
on some North American whalers, his settlement was 
destroyed by a United States man-of-war in 1831. Two 
years afterwards England, despite the protests of Argen- 
tina, resumed possession of the group, and chose as the 
centre of administration the excellent harbour of Port 



1895. 


1897. 


£12,518 


£12,970 


13,159 


13,636 


71,826 


63,286 


122,988 


125,123 



596 COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TEAVEL 

Stanley on the east side of the eastern island. The 
settlers, who in 1897 numbered 2050, all but 125 of 
British origin, have taken part in the management of 
local affairs since 1892, when the Falklands became a 
Crown Colony under a Governor assisted by an executive 
and a legislative council. From the subjoined compara- 
tive table of statistics for recent years, the colony, while 
enjoying a fair measure of prosperity, does not appear to 
be progressing, possibly because the exports being ex- 
clusively agricultural — wool, hides and skins, tallow, 
etc., — necessarily fluctuate with the demands of the 
English markets : — 

1893. 
Revenue .... £11,450 
Expenditure . . . 11,388 

Imports .... 71,126 

Exports .... 134,872 

Population (1891), 1798 ; (1897), 2050. 
Acres under pasturage (1897), 2,325,154. 

Live stock (1897) : sheep, 732,000 ; cattle, 7340 ; horses, 2758. 
Shipping (1897) : 42 vessels of 54,144 tons entered. 
Savings Bank deposits (1897), £38,270. 

South Georgia, which Lies 1250 miles east of Fuegia, 
and has an area of 1600 square miles, is beyond all 
doubt a surviving fragment of some now vanished con- 
tinental land. Apart from a few rocky islets, it con- 
sists of a single island disposed in the same direction 
from north-west to south-east as the Falkland hills and 
fjords, but attaining a far greater elevation. Its very 
old formations — gneiss and argillaceous schists, showing 
no traces of fossils — tower far above the snow-line, 
which in these high latitudes (54° to 55° S.) falls to 
about 2000 feet above sea-level. Some of the snowy 
peaks range from 6000 to 8000 feet, and their slopes 
are fui-rowed by deep gorges filled with glacial streams 
which here and there descend to sea-level. The Eoss 



e.r\i-' 



THE FALKLAND ISLANDS AND SOUTH GEOKGIA 59 

glacier even sends a contingent of icebergs across Eojal 
Bay to join the cortege of these glittering masses drift- 
ing up from the Antarctic waters. It was at Eoyal 
Bay, on the south-east side of the island, that was 
stationed the German expedition sent out to observe the 
transit of Venus in 1882. Except by such casual 
visitors, whalers, or explorers. South Georgia has never 
been occupied, having hitherto failed to attract any 
permanent settlers, although well suited for sheep or 
cattle farming, being covered with tussock-grass up to 
a height of about 1000 feet above the sea. But the 
climate is damp, foggy, and cold, snow falling at times, 
even in February, the warmest month in the year. From 
observations taken in Koyal Bay, the mean tempera- 
ture scarcely averages more than 34° or 35° Fahr., and 
seldom rises above 66°, but falls in winter as low as 9° 
or 10°. Yet the German naturalists were able to coUect 
as many as thirteen flowering plants, twelve of which 
were common to the Falklands and Fuegia, while one 
belonged to the flora of distant New Zealand. Thus are 
daily brought to light fresh facts pointing at the former 
existence of an Austral continent affording perhaps 
nearly continuous land round a great part of the globe in 
late Secondary or early Tertiary times. 



INDEX 



Abipous, 378 

Abrolhos Islands, 495 

Acay hills, 334, 451 

Achataylma, Mount, 191 

Aconcagua, Mount, 17, 276, 278, 336 

Aconquija Peak, 334 

Administration, colonial, 66 

Agua Caliente, 7, 86 

Aguarico river, 168 

Agulhas Negras, 498 

Ahuishiris, 177 

Aimores Mountains, 32 

Aiseu, 7, 271, 295 

Ak-kapana, 49 • 

Alacalufs, 307 

Alausi, 180 

Alcantara, 569 

Alegre, Mount, 12 

river, 453 
Allamaclie river, 244 
Alta Plauicie Central, 242 
Altar, Mount, 162 
Alto Pereiro Mountains, 119 
Amajuacas, 46 

Amanibay Mountains, 447, 449 
Amarga, lagoon, 351 
Amaruniayo river, 234 
Amazon river, 11, 58, 195, 513 
Ambato, 180 
Ancon, 48, 217 
Ancud, 322 
Andes, Cordillera de los, 16 sq. 

of Bolivia, 236 

of Cliili, 273, 276 

of Colombia, 116 

of Peru, 189 
Angostura, 90, 109, 482 
Ante-Cordillera, 334 



Antioquia, 149 
Antis, 214 

Antofagasta, 230, 312 
Antofalla Mountain, 277 
Antuco, Mount, 284 
Apiacas, 555 

Apolobamba Mountains, 237 
Apiire river, 78, 82, 88 
Apurimac river, 199 
Aquidaban river, 455 
Aquiry river, 519 
Aracaju, 572 
Aragua valley, 86 
Araguaya rivei', 523 
Arauca river, 88 
Araucanians, 304 
Arawaks, 554 
Arequipa, 224 
Argentina, 328 sq. 

climate, flora, fauna, 360 

Cordilleras, 333 

history, prospects, 412 

hydrography, 344 

inhabitants, 374 

lake, 357 

Pampas, 339 

Patagonian Plateau, 311 

provinces, 329 

topography, 391 
Arica, 187, 273 
Aroa, 108 

Aropazado channel, 286 
Arrancaplumas, 124, 144 
Artigas, 437 
Ascope, 216 
Ataeania Desert, 229 
Atores, 556 
Atrato river, 2, 126 



600 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Atuel river, 352 

Atures rapids, 89 

Asuncion, 478 

Aucas, 176, 304 

Aullagas, Lake, 202. 242 

Aves Island, 75 

Ayacuclio, 222 

Aymaras, 48, 206 

Azufral Peak, 118 

Azupe de Copiapo Mountain, 277 

Babalioyo river, 166 

Bacatd, 141 

Bahia, 572 

Bahia Negra river, 455 

Bakairi, 555 

Balueles Mountains, 359 

Bauanal Island, 524 

Banda Oriental, 433 

Barcelona, 108 

Baria river, 87 

Barquisimeto, 108 

Barranquerita, 455 

Barranquilla, 126, 146 

Baudos, 138 

Beagle Channel, 270, 276, 289 

Bebedero Lake, 351 

Belem, 567 

Beni river, 234, 244 

Bermejo river, 235, 347, 351 

Betoyes, 138 

" Biru " river, 56 

Boanes, 429 

Bobonaza river, 167 

Boca de Ganales, 286 

Bodadahue river, 29 '> 

Bogota, 141 

Bolivar, 90, 108 

Bolivia, Department, 235 

climate, flora, fauna, 249 

CordQleras, 236 

history, 258 

hydrography, 242 

inhabitants, 254 

resources, 265 

topography, 259 

Yungas zone, 241 
Bolsones, 195 
Bonaventura, 2 
Bonete Mountain, 277, 335 
Bordoncillo Mountain, 118 
Bororos, 386 



Botocudos, 13, 32, 555, 560 
Boyaca, 145 
Bravard, Mount, 282 
Brazil, Name of, 52 

climate, 531 

empire and republic, 68 

ethnical elements, 489 

flora, fauna, 537 

hydrography, 513 

inhabitants, 552 

Negroes in, 63 

physical features, 493 

resources, 584 

settlement of, 61 

states, 488 

topography, 562 

uplands, 18 
Brecknock Peninsula, 289 
Brunswick Peninsula, 288, 292 
Buenaventura, 147 
Buenos Ayres, 405 

lake, 357 
Bulnes, 320 
Burdwood Bank, 593 
Butaco Pass, 336 

Caballococha, Lake, 201 
Cacha, 181 
Cachi hills, 334 
Cachiri Peak, 117 
Caicara, 88 
Cajamarca, 217 
Calafquen, Lake, 276, 297 
Calchaquis, 377, 378 
Caldera, 313 
Calen Inlet, 286 
Cali, 147 
Callao, 218 

Campanario Peak, 283 
Campanero Mountain, 118 
Campas, 214 
Campos, 501, 538 

dos Parexis, 501 
Canaburi river, 87 
Candarave ^lountain, 191 
Candelaria, 149 
Canelos, 176 
Cape Orange, 494 

Branco, 494 

do Norte, 494 

Dungeness, 270 

Espiritu Santo, 270 



INDEX 



601 



Cape Frio, 494 

Froward, 277 

Horn, 56, 290 

Pillar, 287 

Kaso, 494 

S. Agostinho, 494 

S. Koque, 4, 487 

S. Thome, 494 
Carabaya Mountains, 190, 237 
Carabobo, 103 
Caracas, 81, 106 
Caracoles Mountain, 274 
Caras, 173 
Caraz, 217 
Carcararia river, 349 
Carchi river, 128 
Cariaco Mountains, 79 

Gulf, 79 
Carib Mountains, 78 

natives, 554 
Caribbean Sea, 2 
Carizones, 138 
Carmen, 410 
Carmen- Alto, 192 
Carrizal Bajo, 313 
Cartagena, 146 
Cassiquiare river, 11, 80, 87 
Castrovireina, 225 
Catamarca, 397 
Catatubo river, 81, 85 
Catios, 138 
Cauca river, 125 
Caviana Island, 495 
Cayari river, 520 
CeiTO Pintado, 89, 117 

de Cuatro Hermanos, 234 

de Hualean, 190 

de Huandoy, 190 

de Huascan, 190 

de las Minas, 337 

de los Muertos, 89 

de Pasco, 190, 221 

de Potosi, 240, 263 

de Yerba Buena, 337 

Mina, 117 

Terra, 120 

Tunari, 240 
Cesar river, 121 
Chacabuco, 275, 281 
Chachani Mountain, 191 
Chambo river, 167 
Champaqui Peak, 337 



Chauarcillo, 313 
Cbancas, 212 
Chancay, 217 
Chanchamayo, 221 
Chani Mountains, 334 
Ohapada Diamantina, 500 

das Mangabeiras, 500 
Chapadas, 501 
Chapari river, 246 
Charruas, 429 
Chepen, 217 
Chibchas, 48, 135 
Chicama, 216 
Cbicamoclio river, 125 
Chigurrado Peak, 120 
Chiles Peak, 118 
Chili, 269 sq. 

archipelagoes, 285 

central plain, 273 

climate, flora, fauna, 297 

Cordilleras, 274 

hydrography, 294 

inhabitants, 304 

provinces, 272 

resources, 323 

topography, 311 
Chilian Mountain, 284 
Chiloe Islands, 6, 285 
Chimbo, 182 

river, 159, 166 
Chimborazo Mountain, 17, 158, 161 
Chimbote, 217 
Chimore river, 246 
Chimus, 48, 206 
Chinacocha, Lake, 201 
Chincha Islands, 225, 227 
Chinchas, 212 

Chinchaycocha, Lake, 199, 201 
Chipicani Peak, 237, 27 1 
Chiquinquira, 145 
Chiquitos, 47, 255 

Mountains, 241 
Chiriguanos, 257, 379 
Choco Mountains, 120 
Chocos, 138 
Chololo Peak, 190 
Chonos Islands, 6, 285 
Chorolque Peak, 240 
Chos-Malal, 410 
Chubut river, 344, 356 
Chuelches, 32 
Chunchos, 214 



602 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 



Chuquicara river, 200 
Cisne river, 295 
Ciudad de Cura, 107 

Bolivar, 108 
Clarence Island, 290 
Coast Range, Bolivia, 237 

Brazil, 423, 496 

Chili, 273 

Venezuela, 79 
Coca river, 167 
Cochabamba Knot, 210 

Cordillera, 240 

town, 262 
Cockburn Channel, 290 
Cocomas, 555 
Coeonucos Mountains, 119 

natives, 134 
Cocos Islands, 7 
Cocui Mountains, 116 
Cojedes river, 78 
Colastine, 393 
Collas, 48, 208 
Colliguai Mountain, 275 
Colombia, 113 sq. 

climate, 129 

flora, fauna, 131 

history, 149 

hydrograj)hy, 121 

inhabitants, 134 

natural resources, 152 

physical features, 116 

table of departments, 1 

topography, 140 
Colon, 392 
Colonia, 433, 438 
Colorado river, 6, 351 
Coluhuape, Lake, 357 
Coluna Peak, 78 
Combarbala, 314 
Concepcion, 320, 391 
Concha Peak, 78 
Concordia, 392 
Conococha, Lal;e, 200 
Copiapo Mountain, 277 

town, 313 
Corcovado river, 294 
Cordilheira dos Parexis, 501 

Geral, 501 
Cor'lillera Negra, 189 

Central, 118 

de Chila, 198 

de Cochabamba, 240 



Cordillera de la Silla, 79 

de los Andes, 16 sq. 

de los Mosetenes, 241 

del Tigre, 335 

Eastern, 116 

Nevada, 189 

of Argentina and Patagonia, 333 

Quindio, 118 

Real (Bolivia), 237 

Eelada, 275 

Royal, 157 

Western (Chili), 274 

Western (Colombia), 120 
Cordoba, 402 
Coro, 108 
Coronel, 321 

Coro -Pun a Mountain, 191 
Corrientes river, 347 

t«wn, 392 
Cotocayes river, 244 
Cotbpaxi Mountain, 163 
Co.xilha Grande, 497 
Crocker Peninsula, 292 
Crucero Alto, 222 
Cruz de Piedra Pass, 401 
Cubagua Island, 75 
Cuchillas Hills, 421 
Cuchimano Mountain, 81 
Cuchivero river, 81 
Cuenca, 180 
Culenta, 182 
Cumana Mountains, 79 

town, 108 
Cumbal Peak, 118 
Cumbre Pass, 281 
Cunas, 138 
Cundinamarca, 129 
Curarai river, 167 
Curico, 320 
Curitiba, 582 
Custenaiis, 556 
Cuyaba river, 453 

town, 583 
Cuzco, 44, 223 

mountain, 240 

Darwin Mountain, 277, 291 

Sound, 289 
Daule river, 166 
Dawson Island, 290 
Decabezado Peak, 2S3 
Desaguadero (Peru), 202 



INDEX 



603 



Desaguadero (Argentina), 351 
Desire river, 356 
Desolation Island, 287, 290 
Despoblados, 195 
Desterro, 582 
Diamante rivei-, 352 
Dickson, Lake, 360 
Doce river, 529 
Duido Mountain, 81 
Dulce river, 348 
Duran, 182 
Diirazno, 440 

Easter Island, 293 
Ecuador, 154 sq. 

climate, 168 

tlora, fauna, 170 

Highlands, 157 

history, 178 

hydrography, 165 

inhabitants, 173 

provinces of, 155 

topography, 180 

resources, 182 

volcanoes, 159 
Egmont, 595 
El Carmen, 355 
El Dorado, 57, 80, 129 
Elizabeth Island, 275 
Encabellados, 138 
Ene river, 199 
English Narrows, 286 
Ensenada, 408 
Esmeraldas river, 166 
Esperanza, 393 
Espigao das Vertentes, 499 

Falkland Islands, 6, 593 

Sound. 594 
Fallos Channel, 286 
Famatina Mountains, 334 
Fernando Noronha Island, 7, 495 
Flores Island, 436 
Florianopolis, 582 
Formosa, Lake, 523 
Fortaleza, 569 
Francois, Mount, 291 
Fray'Bentos, 439 
Frayle Muerto, 395 
F'taleufii river, 353 
Fuegians, 307 
Fuerte del Apa, 447 



Funza river, 124 
Fuquene, Lake, 128 
Furo Uraria, 517 

Galapagos Islands, 7, 184 
Gallegos river, 345, 356 

town, 410 
Gauchos, 381, 430 
Gennakens, 377 
Georgia Island, 7 
Ges Indians, 555 
Girardot, 143 
Goajira Penirs, 53 
Goajiros, 138 
Golfo Nuevo, 411 
Golondrina river, 295 
Gordon Island, 290 
Goyaz, 583 
Granadas hills, 334 
Gran Chaco, 339, 3G7 
Guachipas river, 348 
Guadalupe, 217 

Mountain, 240 
Guaharibos, 101 
Giiaicas, 101 
Guaicurus, 379 
Guainia river, 88 
Guaitara river, 128 
Guajara Falls, 520 
Guallabamba river, 166 
Gualeguay, 392 
Gualeguaychu, 392 
Gualletue, Lake, 296 
Guanacache lagoon, 351 
Guanape Island, 228 
Guanos, 134, 556 
Guapay river, 245 
Guapore river, 234, 246, 519 
Guarani, 376, 473, 554 
Guarayos, 555 
Guatavita, Lake, 129 
Guaviare river, 88 
Guayaquil, 181 
Guayas river, 158, 165 
Guayra Falls, 447, 458 
Gulf of Darien, 1, 6, 16 

Ancud, 285 

Cariaco, 79 

Corcovado, 276 

Guayaquil, 6 

Oraba, 1 

Panama, 56 



604 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TKAVEL 



Gulf of Paria, 91, 92 
Penas, 276, 286 
Venezuela, 6 

Hanover Island, 286 
Higueritas, 438 
Honda, 124, 144 
Horqueta Peak, 117 
Hoste Island, 290 
Huacas, 208 
Huachacocha, Lake, 201 
Huachipayiis, 215 
Huallaga river, 195, 200 
Huallatiri Peak, 274 
Huancas, 212 
Huanchaca, 259 
Huanche, Lake, 276, 297 
Huanillo Island, 228 
Huantajaya, 312 
Huaraz river, 189, 200 
Huascacocha, Lake, 201 
Huaucho, 217 
Huaura, 217 
Huaylas, 217 
Huaylillas Peak, 190 
Huemules river, 295 
Hnila Peak, 119 
Huraaita, 481 
Hunsa, 145 

Ibera lagoon, 461 
Ibicuy Guazu river, 423 
lea, 225 

river, 168 
Icutn, Mount, 19, 81 
I-Guazu river, 460 
Igurey river, 460 
lUampu Mountain, 238 
Illapel, 314 

lUimani Mountain, 238 
Ho, 226 

Inambari river, 244 
Ineas, 48, 210 

Bridge, 128 
Indios Bravos. 214, 552 

Mansos, 214, 552 
Inland Sea, South America, 10 
Iquique, 312 
Iquitos, 176 
Ita, 481 
Itacolumi, 499 
Itambe Peak, 499 



Itaparica Island, 495 

Itapiru, 482 

Itapua, 481 

Itatia Peak, 19 

Itatiaya Peak, 498 

Itenes river, 234, 246, 519 

Jacuhy river, 530 

Jauja river, 199 

Jauru river, 453 

Javari river, 200, 518 

Jequitinhonha river, 529 

Jesuit Sound, 286 

Jivaros, 176 

Joannes Island, 495 

Juan Fernandez Island, 7, 293 

Jujuy, 395 

river, 455 
Juncal Mountain, 281 
Junin river, 199 

de los Andes, 410 
Juramento river, 348 
Jurua river, 518 
Juruena river, 522 
Jutahy river, 518 

Karayas, 555 

Kayapos, 555 

King Charles South Land, 290, 338 

King William Land, 292 

Kukenam Mountain, 509 

Laca Ahuira, 243 
Lagoa Santa, caves, 31 

dos Patos, 497, 530 

Grande, 524 
La Guaira, 101, 106 
La Guayra, 459 
Laguna Negra, 296 
Lambare, 482 
La Merced, 355 
La Noria, 312 
La Paz, 260 

river, 244 
La Plata, 408 

estuary, 54, 349 

Rio de, 54, 349 
Las Heras river, 295 
Last Hope Inlet, 359 
Las Yeguas, 144, 283 
Latacunga, 180 
Lauricocha, Lake, 197 



INDEX 



605 



Lemaii-e Strait, 57, 338 
Lengua general, 37, 156 
Leona river, 358 
Licancaur Mountain, 234 
Lima, 218 
Limay river, 353 
Linares, 320 

Lingoa geral, 36, 15G, 474 
Lipez Peak, 240 

desert, 244 
Llaillai, 320 
Llanos, 82 

scenery of, 83 
Llanquilhue, Lake, 276, 297 
Llullayacu Mountain, 277 
Lobillo Island, 228 
Loja Mountains, 157 

town, 180 
Londonderry Passage, 289 
Longavi Peak, 283 
Los Patos Pass, 281 
Lota, 321 
Luque, 480 
Lules, 378 

Macabi Island, 228 
Maceio, 572 
Macus, 45 

Madeira river, 234, 519 
Madidi river, 244 
Madre de Dios river, 244 
Maganque, 149 
Magdalena river, 122 

delta, 125 
Magellan Strait, 270, 276, 287 
Malbarco, Lake, 353 
Maldonado, 437 
Malpelo Island, 7 
Mamore river, 234, 245 
Manaos, 525, 567 

natives, 556 
Manitsawas, 555 
Manizales, 147 
-Manrique Peak, 335 
Manseriche gorge, 12, 197 
Mantaro river, 199 
Maracai, 107 
Maracaibo, 53, 81, 108 

Lake, 85 
Marajo Island, 53, 495 
Mar ail on river, 195 
Maravilla Lake, 360 



Mar Chiquita, 349 
Margarita Island, 75 
Marombas river, 423 
Martin Vaz Island, 495 
Mas a Fuera Island, 7, 293 
Mas a Tierra Island, 294 
Matacos, 379 
Matto Grosso, 583 
Maule river, 44 
Maullin, 322 
Mauri river, 234 
Maypu Mountain, 336 
Maypures Rapids, 89 

natives, 101, 556 
Mayro, 196 
Mazanes, 176 

Mbaracayu Mountains, 447, 449 
Mbayas, 379 
Medanos, 84 
Medellin, 147 
Mehinakus, 556 
Mendoza, 398 

Mercedario Mountain. 277, 278 
Merida, 108 

Mesa Nevada de Herveo, 119 
Messier Channel, 286 
Mestizo terminolgy, 64 
Meta river, 88 
Mexiana Island, 495 
Michaga Peak, 240 
Minas, 437, 580 

Geraes, 499 
Minuanos, 429 
Miraflores Mountains, 116 
Miranda river, 454 
Miranhas, 138, 556, 560 
Mirim, lagoon, 422, 530 
Misti Mountain, 191 
Mitues, 138 
Mochila basin, 85 
Mocovis, 378 
Mojos Lake, 11 

depression, 247 

natives, 254 
Molina, 320 
Mollendo, 222 
Montafla, la, 168, 193 
Monte Video, 433 
Moquegua, 226 
Moraleda Clianuel, 285 
Mundrucus, 555, 560 
Murrucucu Mountains, 120 



606 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Musters, Lake, 357 
Muysoas, 48, 135 

Nahuelbuta Mountains, 275 
Nahuelhuapi, Lake, 353 
Nahuquas, 555 
Naiguata Peak, 79 
Napo river, 167 
Nare river, 125 
NavariD Island, 290 
Navarro Mountain, 281 
Negra Mountains, 116 
Negro river (Patagonia), 352 

(Brazil), 524 

(Uruguay), 423 
Negroes, Brazil, 561 
Neiva river, 124 

town, 144 
Nelson Strait, 276 
Neuquen river, 353, 401 
Nevado Peak, 117 
Nico Perez, 437 
Nictheroy, 575 
Noanamas, 138 
Noguez Hill, 455 
Norqiiin, 410 
Nneva Zamora, 108 
Nutabi, 134 

Obidos, Narrows, 521 

Obstruction Sound, 292 

Ocana, 103, 145 

Oeiras, 570 

Ofqui Isthmus, 285 

Olinden river, 455 

Omaguas, 555 

Ornate Mountain, 191 

Onas, 307 

Oran, 396 

Orcacoclia, Lake, 201 

Orchilla Island, 35 

Orejones, 138 

Organs Mountains, 19, 497 

Orinoco river, 11, 53, 87 

delta, 53, 90 

sceuery, 91 
Orococha, Lake, 201 
Oroya, 221 
Oruro, 259 

Osorno Mountain, 284 
Osos Mountains, 120 
Otomacos, 101 



Otway Water, 292 
Ouro'Preto, 499, 580 
Ovalle, 314 
Oyapok river, 487 

Pacarainia Mountains, 19 

Paccaritainbo, 211 

Pachachaca river, 199 

Pacheco, 234 

Pachitea river, 196 

Pacific Range (Ecuador), 158 

Paezes, 138 

Paito river, 86 

Pajonal Mountains, 278 

Palena river, 295 

Pampa de Emjieza, 243 

de Coipara, 243 
Pampas, 277, 339 

Indians, 376, 381 

river, 199 
Pampean Sea, 5, 11, 13 
Panama, Gulf of, 56 

Isthmus of, 56 
Pan de Azucar Peak, 117 
Pao river, 86 
Para, 567 

river, 515 
Paraderos, 21 
Paraguay, 446 sq. 

climate, flora, fauna, 4(12 

history, 482 

inhabitants, 462 

relief, hydrography, 448 

river, 234, 452 

topography, 478 
Paranullo Mountain, 120 
Parana river, 11, 344, 349, 451 

port, 392 
Paranahiba river, 457 

do Norte river, 529 

town, 570 
Paranapanema river, 459 
Paranatinga river, 523 
Parapiti river, 247 
Pardo river, 529 
Paria Mountains, 79 
Parima Lake, 80 
Parimos, 78 

de Frontino Citara, 120 
Parinacota Peak, 274 
Parral, 320 
Pasambio river, 119 



INDEX 



607 



Paso de los Toros, 439 
Pastasa river, 158, 166 
Pasto Grande, 334 

moiiutain, 118, 157 
Patagonian natives, 378, 384 

Plateau, 342 
Patate river, 167 
Patia river, 122, 128 
Paucartambo river, 198 
Paulistas, 490 
Paulo Aftonso Falls, 528 
Paute river, 158 
Pauyarini river, 519 
Payaguas, 472 
Paychue, Lake, 297 
Payen Mountain, 336 
Payne Mountain, 360 
Paysandu, 439 
Pehuelches, 381 
Pelotas river, 423, 460 
Penco, 320 

Peperi Guazu river, 423 
Perene river, 199 
Pernambuco, 570 
Perineos Mountains, 501 
Peru, climate, 202 
departments, 187 
flora, fauna, 204 
hydrography, 195 
inhabitants, 206 
physical features, 188 
resources, 227 
topography, 216 
volcanos, scenery, 191 
Peteroa Peak, 283 
Petorca, 314 
Petropolis, 580 
Piajes, 138 
Pic de Paris, 238 
Pietras Pintadas, 47 
Pilaya river, 248 
Pilcomayo river, 234, 248 
Piojes, 176, 177 
Piray river, 246 
Pisagua, 312 
Pisco, 225 

river, 225 
Planchon Pass, 401 
Plata, Rio, 54, 349 
estuary, 54, 349 
Pollera Mountain, 281 
Pomarape Peak, 274 



Popayan, 147 
Porongos morass, 349 
Port Desiie, 410 
Port Madryn, 410 
Porto Alegre, 530, 582 
Porto Seguro, 55 
Port Stanley, 595, 596 
Portuguesa river, 78 
Potosi, 262 
Preto river, 527 
Puelo river, 295 
Puerto Bermejo, 348 
Puerto Cabello, 101, 107 
Puerto Montt, 322 
Pulperia river, 199 
Punta Arenas, 293, 322 
Puna, the, 193 
Puno, 222 

Purace Mountain, 119 
Purus river, 518 
Putumayo river, 168, 197 

Quebradas, 200 

Queen Adelaide Island, 286 

Queluz, 526 

Querandi, 377 

Quichuas, 48, 206, 210 

Quillabamba river, 198 

Quillota, 317 

Quilmes, 378 

Quinaniari, 120 

Quindio Mountain, 118 

Pass, 119 
Quito, 180 
Quitus, 173 
Qujos, 176 

Raucheria river, 121 
Ranco, Lake, 276, 297 
Ranqueles, 377 
Raspadura Gorge, 127 
Rawson, 411 
Recuay, 217 
Rimac river, 218 
Riobamba, 180 
Rio de Barrancas, 352 
Rjo de Janeiro, 575 
Rio de los Tempanos, 285 
Kio del Pasaje, 348 
Rio das Velhas, 526 
Rio Grande (Argentina), 352 
Bolivia, 215 



608 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGKAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Rio Grande (Brazil), 527, 582 

del Estero, 397 
Rioja, 398 
Rios Primero, Segundo, Tercero, 

Cuarto, Quinto, 349 
Rivadavia, 314 
Rocha, 437 

Rogaguado lagoon, 247 
Roraima Mountain, 509 
Rosario, 393 
Royal Bay, 596 
Ruiz Mountain, 119 
Rupanco, Lake, 297 

Sajama Peak, 237 
Saladillo Lagoon, 349 
Salado river, 347, 351 
Salaverri, 216 
Sala-y-Gomez Island, 293 
Salto, 396, 439 

Grande, 459 

Peak, 334 
Sambaqui, 21 
Sanapanas, 472 
S. Ambrosio Island, 7, 293 
S. Carlos, 320 
S. Diego, Cape, 291 
S. Estevan inlet, 285 
S. Felipe, 108. 320 
S. Feliz Island, 7, 293 
S. Fernando Peak, 283 
S. Francisco river, 18, 526 
S. Jeronimo Mountains, 120 
S. Jose de Maipu Peak, 283 
S. Jose, town, 392 

river, 422 
S. Juan, 401 

river, 2, 122, 126 
S. Julian, 410 
S. Luis, 402 

S. Luiz de Maranbao, 569 
S. Marcos Bay, 569 
S. Martin, Lake, 357 

town, 392 
S. Miguel river, 198 
S. Paulo, 581 
S. Rafael, Lake, 285 

Mount, 336 

town, 401 
S. Valentin, Mount, 285 
Sandy Point, 293, 322 
Santarem heights, 12 



Santa river, 189 

Santa Cruz, town, 262, 410 

island, 55 

river, 345, 356 

Catalina Peak, 119 

Catharina Island, 495 

Clara Island, 294 

Fe de Bogota, 141 

Inez Island, 290 

Isabel Peak, 119 

Rosa, 108, 282, 320 
Santiago, 317 

del Estero, 397 
Santos, 581 
Sapao river, 527 
Sarare river, 90 
Sara-Sara Mountain, 191 
Sara vita river, 125, 129 
Sarmiento, Lake, 360 

mountain, 277, 291 
Savanilla, 126, 146 
Sebastiao Island, 495 
Senguerr river, 357 
Serena, 314 
Serra da Mantiqueira, 18, 498 

Branca, 500 

Chapada, 500 

d'Amambay, 449 

da Barborema, 529 

da Canastra, 500 

das Almas, 500 

das Araras, 500 

das Vertentes, 499, 500 

da Tabatinga, 527 

de Cantareira, 498 

de Macaco, 499 

de Piauhy, 500 

de S. Geraldo, 499 

de S. Martha, 501 

de S. Sebastiao, 499 

Diamantina, 501 

do Brigadeiro, 499 

do Chifre, 500 

do Espinhaco, 498 

do Grao Mogol, 500 

do Mar, 18 496 

dos Aimores, 497 

do Pary, 501 

Geral, 423, 497 

Preta, 500 
Sete Quedas Falls, 458 
Shira river, 229 



INDEX 



GOO 



Sierra de Mar, 3, 7(5, 79 

Auca Mahinda, 330 

Chamayji, 241 

de Cordoba, 337 

de Dona Aua, 278 

de las Animas, 4"22 

de los Moutes, 450 

del Volcan, 338 

de Mar, 3, 76, 79 

de Mato, 80 

de Merida, 3, 10, 77 

de Perijaa, 117 

de Santa Catalina, 235 

de Santa Marta, 121 

de S. Lnis, 337 

de Victoria, 235 

Guamepi, 81 

Manaya, 241 

Maraguaca, 80 

Paearaima, 79 

Parima, 79 

Tandil, 337 

Ventaua, 337 
Simpson river, 271 
Sinu river, 126 
Siriueyris, 215 
Slvyring Water, 292 
Socompa Mountain, 277 
Socorro, 145 
Sogamoso liver, 125 
Soledad, 109 
Solimoens river, 195 
Somno river, 527 
Sorata, Mount, 238 

town, 261 
Soriano, 438 
Sotara, Mount, 128 
South America, contests with North 
America, 1, 3, 7 

central plains, 12 

climate, 8, 38 

discovery, exploration, 52 sq. 
fauna, 25 

flora, 20 

inhabitants, 30 sq. 

inland sea, 10, 14 

iso-cultural zones, 43 
languages, 34 
orography, 15 sq. 
relief, 10 

rivers, table of, 15 
subsidence, 20 



South America, Table of Political 

Divisions, 71 
South Georgia Island, 596 
Staten Island, 57, 270, 290, 338 
Stewart Passage, 289 
Suarez river, 145 
Sucre, 259, 262, 264 
Summa Paz Mountains, 116 
Surubiu river, 526 
Suyas, 555 

Tabatinga, 197, 513 

Table, comparative, of North and 
South America, 7 
of Amazonian affluents, 518 
of Andean peaks, 17 
of Bolivian departments, 235 
of Bolivian towns, 259 
of Brazilian States, 488 
of Brazilian towns, 566 
of Chilian provinces, 272 
of Cliilian rivers, 295 
of Chilian towns, 312 
of Colombian departments, 114 
of Colombian towns, 141 
of departments of Peru, 187 
of Mestizo terms, 64 
of Paraguayan towns, 478 
of Peruvian tow^ls, 216 
of provinces of Argentina, 329 
of provinces of Ecuador, 155 
of South American races and 

languages, 38 
of South American rivers, 15 
of South American States, 71 
of towns of Argentina, 391 
of Uruguayan departments, -120 
of Uruguayan towns, 432 
of Venezuelan State*, 75 
of Venezuelan towns, 106 
of volcanoes of Ecuador-, 161 

Tacaloa, 149 

Tacna, 187 

Tacora Pealc, 274 

Tacuari river, 454 

Tados, 138 

Tahami, 134 

Talca, 320 

Talcahuano Bay, 320 
town, 320 

Tama Peak, 117 

Tambo Gobierno, 158 



VOL. I 



2 II 



610 



COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 



Tambo river, 199 
Tandil lulls, 10, 337 
Tapajos river, 521 
Tapana river, 519 
Tapuyas, 46, 554 
Tarapaca, 187, 229, 312 
Tarma, 221 

Tata Yactura Peak. 274 
Taytao Peniusula, 285 
Teffe river, 518 
Tehuelches, 378 
Telcho river, 295 
Tequendania Falls, 125 
Teiico river, 348 
Therezina, 569 
Three Brothers, Mount, 291 
Tiahuanaco, 49, 51, 206 
Tibucuary river, 455 
Tierra del Fuego, 287 
Tiete river, 459 
Tigre river, 167 

range, 279 
Timotes, 100 
Tinguirii'ica Peak, 283 
Titicaca, Lake, 201, 209, 242 

island, 210 
Tocantlns river, 521 
Tobago Island, 6 
Tobas, 378, 380 
Tocuyo, 108 
Todos Santos Peak, 240 
Tolima Peak, 119 
Tome, 320 
Tomolasta Peak, 337 
Tongoy, 314 
Tonquini, 222 
Topo river, 167 
Tortuga Island. 75 
lYelew, 411 
Tres Bocas, 346, 456 
Trigo Mountain, 274 
Triucheras river, 86, 107 
Trinidad Island, 6, 7, 53, 495 

river, 295 
Trombetas river, 526 
Tronador Mountain, 284 
TrujUlo (Venezuela), 108 

(Peru) 216 
Tua Peak, 237 
Tucabaca river, 455 
Tucacas, 108 
Tucuman, 396 



Tucumbo hill, 451 

Tumbez river, 229 

Tunguragua Mountain, 162 

Tiinja, 145 

Tupi, 554 

Tupinambaranas Island, 517 

Tupinambas, 46 

Tupungato Mountain, 17, 277, 27! 

Turmero, 107 

Tutupaca Mountain, 191 

Tuyuneris, 215 

Uberaba, Lake, 234 
Ubinas Mountain, 191 
Ucayali river, 196, 198 
Uitotos, 138 
Uribante river, 90 
Urre-Lafquen, Lake, 351 
Urubamba river, 198 
Urubuijunga Falls, 458 
Urucuty Mountains, 449 
Uruguaj', 419 sq. 

climate, flora, fauna, 424 

departments, 420 

hydrography, 422 

inhabitants, 429 

relief, 421 

resources, 441 

river, 442 

topography, 431 
Uspallata Pass, 401 

Valdivia, 275, 322 
Valencia, 106 

lake, 86 
Valparaiso, 314 
Vauras, 556 
Venezuela, 72 sq. 

climate, 92 

flora, fauna, 93 

hydrography, 85 

inhabitant.s, 98 

llanos, 82 

states of, 75 

topograjDhy, 105 

uplands, 76 
Ventana hills, 10, 337 
Ventuari river, 88 
Verde river, 167, 234 
Victoria Falls, 460, 461 

to vn, 575 
Vicuna, 314 



INDEX 



Gil 



Viedma, S'>b 

lake, 357 
Vilcaniayo river. 198 
Vilcanota, 198, 240 
Vilelas, 378 
Villa del Pilar, 348 

de Mercedes, 402 

Nueva, 402 

Bella, 583 

Conceptiou, 481 

Eucaruacion, 481 

Franca, 481 

Hayes, 481 

Rica, 480 
Villarica Mountain, 284 

lake, 297 
Villegagnon Island, 577 
Villeta, 481 
Viscachas river, 359 
Viscachillas Peak, 237 
Volcanoes (Ecuador), 159 

Wapisianas, 556 
Wellington Island, 6, 286 
W'ollaston Island, 290 



Xarayes lagoon, 454 
Xiugu river, 521 



Yabricoya Peak, 274 
Yahgans, 307 
Yapacani river, 246 
Yaracui river, 78 
Yaros, 429 

Yarumal Mountain, 120 
Yaualapiti, 556 
Yavary river, 234 
Yeguas, 124 
Yerbabuena, 313 
Ypoa lagoon, 456, 461 
Yuncas, 48, 206 
Yungas zone, 241 
Yungay, 217 
Yuruuas, 555 



Zaparos, 177 
Zenta Mountains. 334 
Zuinag river, 167 
Zulia river, 85 



THE END 



Frintcdhy R. ><t R. Clakk, I,iMiTEn, Edinhurgh. 



STANFORD'S 

COMPENDIUM OF GEOGRAPHY AND TRAVEL 

Re-issue, Revised, and in great part Re-written, with New Illustrations and 
Maps. Twelve Volumes, Large crown 8vo, cloth, price 15s. each. 

"The new issue of ' Stanford's Compendium of Geography and Travel ' is a publica- 
tion of great value, and contains, in convenient form, the latest geographical re.sults 
of travel and research adequately treated. Not only is tlie information accurate, but 
the form in which the work is produced is admirable, and English geography may be 
jiroud of such a series. It is useful for educational purposes and for reference, and 
pie isant to the general reader. — Atlienceum. 



EUROPE.— Vol. I. The Countries of the Mainland (exclud- 
ing the North- West). By George G. Chisholm, M. A., B.Sc. With 
32 Maps and over 100 Illnstrations. 

EUROPE. — Vol. II. In preparation. 

ASIA. — Vol. I. Northern and Eastern Asia, Caucasia, 

Russian Turkestan, Silieria, Chinese Empire, and Japan. By A. H. 
Keane, F.R.G.S. AVith 8 Maps and 91 Tllustrations. 
ASIA. — Vol. II. Southern and Westei'n Asia, Afghanistan, 

India, Indo-China, ]\Ialay Peninsula, Turkey in Asia, Arabia, and 
Persia. By A. H. Keane, F.R.G.S. With 7 xMaps and 89 Illustra- 
tions. 
AUSTRALASIA. — Vol. I. Australia and New Zealand. By 
Alfred Russei, Wallace, LL.D., D.C.L., F.R.S. With numerous 
Maps and Illustrations. 

AUSTRALASIA. — Vol II. Malaysia and the Paeifie Archi- 
pelagoes. By F. H. H. GuiLLEMARD, M. D., author of "The Cruise 
ot tlie Marchcsa." With numerous Maps and Illustrations. 

AFRICA. — Vol. L North Africa. By A. H. Keane, 

F.R.G.S., Author of " Asia" in same series, "Eastern Geography," 
etc. With 9 Maps and 77 Illustrations. 

AFRICA. — Vol. IL South Africa. By A. H. Keane, 

l'\R.G.S., Author of "North Af'iica" in same series, "Eastern Geo- 
graphy." etc. With 11 Maps and 92 Illustrations. 

NORTH AMERICA.— Vol. I. Canada and Newfoundland. 

By Samuel Edward Dawson, Litt.D. (Laval), F.R.S.C. With 
18 Maps and 90 Illustrations. 
NORTH AMERICA.— Vol IL The United States. By Henry 

Gannet'I', Chief Geogra])her of the United States Geological Survey. 
With 16 Maps and 7-2 Illustnitions. 

CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA.— Vol. I. South America. 

By A. H. Keane, F.U.G.S. Edited bv Sir Clements Maukham, 
K.C.B., F.R.S. With 13 Maps and 84 Illustrations. 

CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA.— Vol. II. Central America 

and West Indies. By A. H. Keane, F.R.G.S. Edited by Sir 
Clements Maukham, K.C.B., F.R.S. With Maps and numerous 
Illustrations. [In the Press. 

LONDON: EDWARD STANFORD. 12, 13, 14 Long Acre, W.C. 



i CENTRAL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY 
f University of California, Saji Diego 

1 DATE DUE 


JUN 1 fi iq79 




MAP 9. ^ 1979 
















w 






































i 




A 




A 




M 




m 


a 39 


UCSb ^^1